PREVENTING SPREADING |
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Sport boat in a highway of Brazil. |
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L. fotunei larvae. Last state of planctonic phase . |
There
is no quick economically and environmentally sustainable way of getting
rid of the golden mussel. It causes considerable damage in water intakes
and pipes (macrofouling) as well as substantial
damage to tourism and nautical sports, as already happened at dos Pombas
beach, Guaíba lake, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. On boats,
it causes problems in refrigeration systems.
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Another difficulty, which doesn't need many comments, is having a layer of mussels covering the boats. As time goes by, the golden mussel will spread and increase its distribution to the rest of South America's freshwater bodies. Now is the time to act to reduce the spread and the damage it can cause. This way, researchers will have time to optimize sustainable prevention and control methods. |
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The
countercurrent advance of this species (at about 240 km per year) is done
by anthropocoria (taken by man); stuck to the hull or by ships, both by
water and by ground (when vessels, nets or trailers are
taken by road to other bodies of water). Avoiding an uncontrolled growth of it's spread, as well as it's growth on ships, will prevent later investments to keep hulls clean. |
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Raft on the Paraná
River that transports oil, cereals, etc. |
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STEPS TO PREVENT OR SLOW DOWN THE SPREADING OF THE GOLDEN MUSSEL: |
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(1) DARRIGRAN, G.; M. MAROÑAS & D. COLAUTTI. (2004). Air exposure as a control mechanism for the “golden mussel” Limnoperna fortunei (Dunker, 1857) (Bivalvia, Mytilidae). Journal of Freshwater Ecology, 19(3): 461-464. (2) DARRIGRAN , G.; D. COLAUTTI & M. MAROÑAS. (2007) A potential biocide for control of the golden mussel, Limnoperna fortunei. Journal of Freshwater Ecology. 22(2):359-360. (3) DARRIGRAN, G. & N. ARCARÍA (2011) Las invasiones biológicas en la costa Argentina y en la Cuenca del Plata. 179-192. En: Rubén Álvaro López - Silvia Cristina Marcomini (Eds.) “PROBLEMÁTICA DE LOS AMBIENTES COSTEROS. Sur de Brasil, Uruguay y Argentina”. UNESCO. Editorial Croquis |
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more information contact
us by e-mail:
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