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Virginia’s Prince William County launches freshwater mussels pilot study

Prince William County’s Department of Public Works, Environmental Management Division (EMD) announced it is evaluating whether the native Eastern Elliptio mussel can survive in local waterways.

In this pilot study, the EMD, in partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and the Northern Virginia Regional Commission (NVRC), is introducing freshwater mussels into several streams throughout the county.

“Results from the study will help guide future mussel introduction projects,” the government of Prince William County, Virginia (PWCVA) said on its website.

As part of the study, researchers obtained mussels from the USFWS Harrison Lake National Fish Hatchery. They deployed the mussels in specially designed cages across four streams in the area. Each site contains four cages, with about a dozen mussels in each. They provide a secure, controlled environment for researchers to monitor growth and survival.

Periodically, researchers check on the mussels to assess their health, shell growth, and how they adapt to the streams.

Before deployment, EMD conducted environmental assessments at four potential sites. This included eDNA testing and electroshocking, to confirm the presence of host fish. These fish are important to the Eastern Elliptio mussel lifecycle – they provide the conditions for mussels to thrive and reproduce. Upon verifying host fish populations at each location, the mussel cages were deployed.

Now that mussels are stocked in all stream sites, the project team is eager to gather data on their survival and growth. “This study represents an exciting step forward in the County’s ongoing commitment to local water quality improvement and restoration of aquatic ecosystems,” said PWCVA.

This project is the result of collaboration with several partners, including Broadwater Innovations, NVRC, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, and Dominion Energy.