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The Nature Conservancy in Indiana Indiana Homepage Where We Work How We Work Ways of Giving Journey With Nature Events News Press Releases Volunteer Contact |
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The Tippecanoe and Mussels Too
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The Tippecanoe River was first named the Kithtippecanunk by the Miami and Shawnee Indians which meant “place of the buffalo fish.” Buffalo fish still exist in the Tippecanoe as does a great deal of other aquatic species. With its clear, clean waters and beautifully wooded shores, the river has provided a rich habitat for an abundance of fish, mussels and wildlife that live there.
Because of the biodiversity found in and around the water, The Nature Conservancy has concluded that the Tippecanoe River is one of the top ten biologically important rivers in the United States. A great number of endangered or threatened species are supported by the river therefore it is critical that the health of the waterway is maintained for all of the plant and animal life that depends on it. Freshwater mussels are a great example of species that need the Tippecanoe as much as the river needs them.
The Tippecanoe and Mussels Too
The Tippecanoe River is a haven for endangered freshwater mussels – one of the most endangered species in North America. According the to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services, it has been estimated that 70% of our freshwater mussels are extinct, endangered or in need of special protection. Environmental changes in their habitats and how they must live have created problems for their existence in the past 200 years.
All freshwater mussels belong to the mollusk order of Unionoida. They are simple creatures kept safe by two shells connected by a hinge. The shells are formed by calcium carbonate layers taken from the water that surrounds them and vary in size and color. Mussels can be anywhere from one inch long to over one foot and range from yellow to green to brown to black shells.
Unlike other animals, mussels do not have to search for food, but wait for their meals to come to them. Suspended in the water are tiny plants and animals called plankton that are siphoned by the mussel’s gills which filter out their food and take in oxygen. They can move about when necessary by using a muscular appendage, or “foot”, but traveling distance is limited.
Mussels of Indiana
There are 47 different freshwater mussel species found in Indiana; twenty-four of them federally or locally endangered or of special concern. Mussels are found burrowed underneath the sand of river and stream bottoms or in the murky depths of our lakes and ponds.
The following table displays mussels that are listed as endangered in Indiana. The names followed by an asterisk (*) is also included on the federally endangered list as well. For a listing of all freshwater mussels in the state, check out the DNR’s Freshwater Mussel list.
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Clubshell* |
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Sheepnose |
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Pink mucket* Lampsilis abrupta |
Snuffbox |
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Pyramid pigtoe |
Tubercled blossom pearly* |
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Rabbitsfoot |
White catspaw* |
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Rough pigtoe* |
White wartyback* |
Why are Mussels Important to the Tippecanoe?
The health of the mussel population is used to measure the health of the Tippecanoe itself. The proverbial canary in the coal mine, mussels are used as an early warning system for possible environmental health concerns because they are extremely sensitive to changes in water quality. Therefore sudden die-offs or large mussel kills are reliable indicators of water pollution. Ultimately, when mussels are thriving, we can safely assume that the water is clean and other species in the river are thriving as well.
Mussels are valuable to the river system for other reasons. They are natural water purifiers with a single mussel filtering several gallons of water a day. Mussels also play a vital role in the aquatic food chain as a source of energy for otters, hellbenders and other wildlife. Without mussels, Tippecanoe would lose an important biological resource that helps keep the river healthy and happy.
What The Nature Conservancy & Indiana is Doing for Tippecanoe
Along the Tippecanoe River, landowners are working with conservation groups to protect water quality by restoring wetlands, planting trees, applying conservation tillage practices in nearby farm fields, and picking up trash along the river banks. The Nature Conservancy’s Tippecanoe River Project Office is working with these landowners to ensure the good health of the river and surrounding ecosystems.
Also working to protect the Tippecanoe as a natural habitat and recreational site is the Department of Natural Resources. The health of the Tippecanoe watershed is just as important to those who fish and canoe as the animals in it. DNR is also taking steps to remove the invasive zebra mussel from the Tippe and all Indiana waterways. Zebra mussels will completely cover native mussels and compete with them for food and oxygen which will eventually weaken and starve our native mussels.
For More Information
USGS Statistical Summary of Streamflow Data for Indiana including several outputs for the Tippecanoe
Indiana Outfitter's information on the Upper Tippecanoe and Lower Tippecanoe
Tippecanoe River Watershed Restoration Action Strategy
Check out the Life History section of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services information on Freshwater Mussels, and learn how mussels need fish to complete their life cycle.
U.S FWS Midwest's Ecological Services Information on Endangered Freshwater Mussels
Illinois Natural History Survey's Field Guide to Freshwater Mussels of the Midwest - enter through the Table of Contents link
Nature picture credits (top to bottom, left to right): Photo © TNC (Tippecanoe river, freshwater mussels);
Photo © Illinois Natural History Survey (Fat pocketbook, Orangefoot pimpleback, Pink mucket, rabbitsfoot ); Graphic © E. Blando (Tippecanoe map).
