Petition seeks federal protection for rare North Carolina mussel species
RALEIGH, NC (WWAY) — An environmental group is asking the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to provide federal protections for a rare freshwater mussel found only in a small section of a North Carolina river.
The Center for Biological Diversity filed a petition requesting that the solstice creekmussel be protected under the Endangered Species Act. The group says the species lives only within a four-mile stretch of the Little River in North Carolina.
“Solstice creekmussels are some of the most endangered mussels in the world and they’ll blink out of existence in our lifetimes if they don’t get federal protections,” said Will Harlan, a senior scientist with the Center for Biological Diversity.
Solstice creekmussels are freshwater bivalves with dark, ringed shells that grow to about one inch in diameter. The species gets its name because, unlike most mussels that reproduce during warmer months, it reproduces around the winter solstice.
The Center for Biological Diversity says pollution within the Yadkin-Pee Dee River system is one of the biggest threats facing the species. The group cited agricultural runoff, wastewater discharges, stormwater runoff, industrial waste and habitat changes caused by dams as contributing factors.
According to the organization, only 43 solstice creekmussels have been observed over the past decade.
Freshwater mussels help filter waterways by removing pollutants, algae and bacteria. The Center for Biological Diversity says a single mussel can filter up to 15 gallons of water each day.
The petition now asks the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to review the species and determine whether it should receive protections under the Endangered Species Act.
