FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

December 1, 2005

Contacts

Sunfish Gobble Up Zebra Mussels

Zebra mussels have been a nuisance to the Great Lakes region since they were first detected there in the late 1980s. The pumpkinseed sunfish, a native panfish that is common in shallow waters of the lakes, has apparently become quite fond of eating the mussel invader.

Greg Andraso, a professor of Biology at Gannon University in Erie, PA found that zebra mussels are the most important food in the diet of pumpkinseeds in Presque Isle Bay on Lake Erie. "This really isn't all that surprising because pumpkinseeds are known to feed heavily on mollusks like snails and small native clams," notes Andraso. "However, we didn't know the extent to which pumpkinseeds prey on zebra mussels until now."

Andraso also investigated the dietary habits of the bluegill, another species of sunfish closely related to the pumpkinseed, but found that they only occasionally eat zebra mussels. "Bluegills aren't really built for crushing mollusk shells," states Andraso, "so it wasn't all that surprising that we didn't find many zebra mussels in their diets." The few mussels that were eaten by bluegills usually small enough to be swallowed whole.

In areas where pumpkinseeds become abundant, their dietary preference for zebra mussels may play a localised role in controlling zebra mussel populations.

Original Publication Information

Results of this study "Summer Food Habits of Pumpkinseeds (Lepomis gibbosus) and Bluegills (Lepomis macrochirus) in Presque Isle Bay, Lake Erie," are reported by Gregory M. Andraso in the latest issue (Volume 31, No. 4, pp. 397-404) of the Journal of Great Lakes Research, published by the International Association for Great Lakes Research, 2005.

Contacts

For more information about the study, contact Gregory M. Andraso, Department of Biology, Gannon University, 109 University Square, Erie, PA 16541; andraso@gannon.edu; (814) 871-7255.

For information about the Journal of Great Lakes Research, contact Marlene Evans, Editor, National Water Research Institute, 11 Innovation Boulevard, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 3H5, Canada; editor@iaglr.org; (608) 692-1076.

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Since 1967, IAGLR has served as the focal point for compiling and disseminating multidisciplinary knowledge on North America's Laurentian Great Lakes and other large lakes of the world and their watersheds. In part, IAGLR communicates this knowledge through publication of the Journal of Great Lakes Research, available to members in print and electronic form. A searchable archive of the journal is available online and includes the abstracts of articles from the journal's inception in 1975 through the most recent issue. In addition, complete articles are available to members who have signed up for an electronic subscription.