Category Archives: Minutes

NW Native Freshwater Mussel Workgroup: Quarterly Meeting

Monday, September 12, 2022 14:00 Pacific Time

September 2022_NW Native Freshwater Mussel Workgroup minutes

Zoom Meeting

Attendees: Emilie Blevins (Xerces), Jim Holley (Xerces), Alexa Maine (CTUIR), Jen Poirier (USFWS), Paul Benton (ODOT), Julie Tyson (WDFW), Emily Johnson (BLM), Patty Morrison, Linnea Gullickson (USFWS), Ron Twibell, Ralph Lampman (Yakama Fisheries), Al Smith, Courtney Newlon (USFWS), Laura McMullen (ICF), Stephen Bollens (WSU), Marie Winkowski (WDFW), Hanna Barbe (Xerces), Sean Gibbs, Celeste (Zee) Searles Marcazano, Michele Weaver (ODFW), Ann Gannam (USFWS), Andy Lawrence, Travis Williams (Willamette Riverkeeper), RJ Hemingway, Cole (WDFW Fisheries), Lusha Tronstad (Wyoming Natural Diversity Database), Alyssa Bangs (USFWS)

Meeting Minutes

• FMCS Symposium planning. Emilie shared the Ellipsaria announcement (PDF). April 10-14 2023. Doubletree Hotel, Portland, OR. Patty-schedule: Mon: introductions and workshop, Tues-Thurs: plenary and presentations, Fri: Field trips. Online option available using WHOVA. Tech savvy volunteers requested.
  • Workshop for underwater photography, Freshwater Illustrated.
  • Marie and Travis interested in assisting as volunteers.
• Society for Freshwater Science meeting 10/19-21/22 Caldwell, ID
  • Zee: assistance for funding to attend conferences available
• Travis Williams: OCRF eDNA proposal for 12 major tributaries funded
  • Monitoring grant through OWEB ranked #1
  • Private funding for eDNA analysis 2023-24 submitted
  • Desire to get people into field, citizen science and acquainting public with local freshwater mussel species
  • Publication Willamette Riverkeeper and Zee: https://www.northwestscience.org/page-1844575
  • Crabtree Creek has many W Pearlshell where Willamette Riverkeeper is acquiring property. Thomas Creek has many W Pearlshell too. S Santiam tributaries. Many juveniles in that stretch.
  • Goal to fill in gaps of distribution of mussels on Willamette River
  • Would like to help plan a field trip for conference
• Emilie: reshared the workgroup spreadsheet for where sampling is occurring exists to minimize repeat work and increase collaboration: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1dLVWzPg8IMq95CEHX8k75NepoFMV42Hlm6mZlB8cbng/edit
• Workgroup chair position: Emilie will transition out following the 2023 FMCS symposium.
• Workgroup transition to FMCS chapter/division: Emilie has been working through the idea with FMCS leadership and membership since 2020, following initial workgroup interest and discussions in 2019. There have been multiple conversations about regional groups becoming chapters, but no other regional groups in North America are interested in pursuing at this time. Currently on hold.
• Protocol development effort: Presentation by Emilie on behalf of core team: Xerces, BLM, Confederated Tribes of Umatilla Reservation, USFS, and USFWS.

• • Presented on current effort to develop a standard visual protocol for western freshwater mussels
    • Reasons: No species listed, but ranges are declining. Limited efforts to survey for mussels in time and space, increased interest in mussels with petition for listing, requests for guidance and standardized protocol increase and make surveys comparable, drought/fire can alter habitat quickly, useful for tracking regional trends, still finding mussels during restoration instead of prior to disturbance
    • Challenges: Waterbody variability-whitewater to small creeks, instream habitat type variation, Variability in density and quantity, single species or several
    • Incorporate existing survey frameworks, legal cultural and scientific perspectives, 2020 reviewed existing methods, 2021 tested some methods, since 2021 developed protocol framework
    • Adaptable Approach-modular and nested: Exploratory, Reach, Incidental, Quadrat & Transect. Covariates collected

• Reach (50m)-midpoint and 25m up and downstream
• Incidental: during other surveys or not associated with another project, minimal info required. Opportunistic.
• Exploratory (1km recommended) but other factors allow for other distances. Can be incorporated into Redd surveys
• Transect surveys-random and non-random sampling
• Quadrat-requires excavation and disturbance of mussel beds. Provides info on size of individuals and condition

• • • Soft rollout. Determining covariate data to collect. Goal to have protocol prepared for publication by 2024
  • Zee asked about the need for new protocols. Emilie reviewed the types of individuals, their level of expertise, and time commitments that all factor into a need for succinct and easy to interpret guidance.
  • Laura asked about where it will be published. Emilie discussed the development of a manual for BLM and future peer reviewed publication. Intend to be available widely for others to use.

PNW Native Freshwater Mussel Workgroup Quarterly Meeting

June 21, 2022:

Zoom(remote)

June 2022NW Native Freshwater Mussel Workgroup minutes

Updates:

1. Michelle Weaver and Emilie Blevins
   1. Symposium Monday April 10-13, 2023 in Portland
   2. Week long Monday-Friday
   3. Still working on the logistics of virtual and interactive
   4. Need assistance with hospitality aspect of symposium: transportation, band, and t-shirts
   5. more updates at next quarterly meeting
2. PNW Society for Freshwater Science Meeting
   1. October 19-21, 2022
   2. Section about mussels
   3. Includes fieldtrips
3. National AFS Meeting
   1. Spokane, WA
   2. August 2022
4. ODFW and Xerces Collaboration
   1. Workshops about presenting best management practices for mussels in 2022 in central Oregon and Tualatin
5. Michele Weaver
   1. ODFW, WDFW, and Xerces were awarded CSWIG grant
   2. 3 year project starting in 2023
   3. Includes Web enabled database, field surveys, and EDNA
6. Linea Gullickson-SSA:
   1. Friday 24^th meeting about SSA project
   2. September 2024 SSA publication
7. Dorene MacCoy:
   1. Lot of Western Pearlshell mussels were located in Loggers Creek in Boise. Moving mussels for culvert replacement. Currently writing up habitat assessment.

PNW Native Freshwater Mussel Workgroup

Quarterly Meeting

Monday, April 11, 2022 1:00 – 2:15 Pacific Time

Zoom Meeting

Attendees: Ralph Lampman, Joel Sauder, Dechen Edwards, Courtney Newlon, Emilie Blevins, Alexa Maine, Rob Plotnikoff, Alyssa Bangs, Al Smith, Julie Harris, Jen Poirier, Lyn Snoddy, Sean Gibbs, Michele Weaver, Stephen Siddons, Carmen Leguizamon, Linnea Gullikson, Ryan Blackadar, Monica Blanchard, Zane Ketchen, Craig Haskell, Marie Windowski, E.D. Dascher, R.D. Nelle, Kat Sarensen, Stephen Bollens, Rebecca Mahan, Linda Nemeth, Bruce Moffatt, Ally Helmig, Julie Campbell Hansen, Matt Piteo, Keith Douville, Bruce Hansen, Keith Aitkins.

PNW Workgroup April 2022 Minutes

Agenda and Minutes:

• Dechen Edwards (Eastern Washington University) – Presented her M.S. work on the “Life history and microbiome analysis of freshwater fingernail clams (Sphaeriidae) exposed to trace metal pollution”.
• Cody McCoy – Post Doc at Stanford University. Interested in photosynthesis in freshwater mussels. Asking folks if they have observed freshwater mussels with a greenish tint on the tissue? She is interested in folks submitting samples from across the US. Please reach out to Cody ([email protected]).
• Western Ridged Mussel SSA (Courtney Newlon) – Emilie mentioned there was a status update request on the Western Ridged mussel SSA. Courtney presented: We are still early in the organization stage, we identified a FWS core team lead from each state and our internal kickoff meeting is next week. Most of you are probably aware that the Dear Interested Parties letter was sent out a few weeks ago, with a request for data submission date of May 17, 2022.  I understand that many folks have plans to collect data this summer and are interested in knowing if that data can be incorporated into the SSA.  This SSA process has a very tight timeline, determined by HQ and once we determine our analysis using available data, it will not be possible to incorporate new data. Depending on the type of data (presence/absence vs. population trend data) there is a high chance we will be able to accept it until later in the summer.  I would ask though if you have plans to collect data this summer and would like it included in the SSA, I would consider collecting earlier than later. Please email me a heads up and I will make note and we may/or may not be able to accommodate.
• Ralph Lampman (Yakama Nation) asked if there was a seasonal temperature that initiated vertical mussel movement towards the surface. They had PIT tagged mussels and are unable to determine if they are still buried or dead underneath the substrate. Emilie suggested reaching out to Doug Nemeth.
• Emilie Blevins/Michele Weaver provided an update on the 2023 FMCS Symposium in Portland, OR April 10-14. This will be a hybrid meeting (in-person and online). There will be a need for others to assist with various aspects of putting on this symposium. If you are interested in helping, please reach out to Emilie, Alexa or Patty.
• CTUIR – Workshops
• One-day field trip training (May 18, 2022) – One day workshop which will include a virtual presentation and a basic field work training session will be in the Grand Ronde basin. Mussel overview, identification, survey methods, techniques, and tagging.
• Two-day field trip training (June 13-14, 2022) in the John Day Basin. They would prefer this training be for folks that work or in the John Day basin.
• Update from Dave Stagliano
  • David Stagliano – Kristin Cook M.S. defense is next week. Studies on the Western Pearlshell and glochidia
• Update from Dorene MacCoy and Rob Plotnikoff about a workshop with a mussel symposium in Fall of 2022. Stay tuned for more details.

January 2022_NW Native Freshwater Mussel Workgroup minutes

NW Native Freshwater Mussel Workgroup

Quarterly Meeting

Tuesday, January 18, 2022 1:00 Pacific Time

Zoom Meeting

Attendees: Kevin Aitkin, Craig Haskell, Alexa Maine, Josh Boyce, Emilie Blevins, Al Smith, Katherine Saurenson, Patty Morrison, Kate Holcomb, RD Nelle, Andy Lawrence, Linnea Gullikson, Dorene MacCoy, Emily Johnson, Christina Wang, Ryan Blackadar, Julie Campbell Smith, Tyler Beals, Jennifer Poirier, Bruce Moffatt, Tim Counihan, Almeta Helmig, Stephen Bollens, Laura Navarette, Rob Plotnikoff, Liz Bockstiegel, Michael Stephenson, Michele Weaver, Michelle Anderson, John Chan, Courtney Newlon, Jerry George, Ann Gannam, Bruce Moffatt, Celeste Searles Mazzacano, Gretchen Sausen, Jerry George, Dave Stagliano

New folks who introduced themselves: Josh Boyce (USFWS, Arcata FWO), Kat Sarensen (USFWS), Linnea Gullikson (USFWS), Christina Wang (USFWS), Tyler Beals (Yakama Nation)

Meeting Minutes

• FMCS – Board meeting update, bylaw development and division structure within the FMCS (Emilie Blevins).
• FMCS board meeting highlights 1) internship opportunities 2) professional certification 3) August 2022 workshop in Tennessee that will focus on sampling protocols ($250/member)
• 2023 FMCS Symposium April 9-13; PNW was to hold 2021 meeting in Portland. PNW members (Alexa Maine, Michele Weaver, Kate Holcomb, Teal Waterstrat, Kevin Aitkin, and Patty Morrison) put a lot of work into planning.  There is a need to reinitiate the planning committee again, developing the program, developing abstract.
• There may be a need for others to assist? Reach out to Emilie, Alexa or Patty if you are interested.  Interest by FMCS to provide a virtual aspect to this meeting, so if anyone who has experience with hybrid meetings, please reach out with any advice.
• Goal is for the workgroup to be a Division of the FMCS by the annual meeting in 2023. See the draft of the structure here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1CZP5yt92HoKImcBKg4CCmNQSEyXbqcvW/view
• eDNA planning and collaboration (Emilie Blevins Xerces Society and Courtney Newlon, USFWS)
• Shared the coordinated effort between Xerces, BLM, USFS, USFWS, ODFW, and WDFW to identify priority basins and google doc link to enter current and/or upcoming projects to avoid duplication of effort.
• RMRS would like to coordinate with the workgroup to ensure that effort is not being duplicated, particularly since they do not process all the samples being collected.
• FWS looking to coordinate with other agencies/groups working across the species’ range, including statewide or regional efforts (e.g., state fish and wildlife, USFS, BLM) to better inform the FWS western ridged Species Status Assessment as an opportunity to fill in distribution gaps for the western ridged mussel but also for the other mussel species, as it would help better describe current distribution, and potentially identify areas where more intensive surveys could be conducted.
• Recommendations could be cited for use in funding applications
• Recommendations will be made available to the workgroup in the coming weeks
• Here is a list of known existing eDNA projects, please share any eDNA projects you are aware of: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1dLVWzPg8IMq95CEHX8k75NepoFMV42Hlm6mZlB8cbng/edit
• Alexa Maine shared the CTUIRs planned 5-year effort for CTUIR ceded territories.
• Kate Holcomb shared that UDWR worked with USU (Karen and Torrey) and noted that the # of samples, low densities might give a negative reading.  Sampling distance is a top consideration.
• Emilie Blevins mentioned a paper out of California related to sampling distance (added to Google doc)
• Dorene MacCoy brought up that Matt Laramie and David Pilliod are working with her on probability of detection study with known numbers, sampling at different times, what detecting, when detecting, Results expected Spring 2022.
• Josh Boyce mentioned USFWS funding to conduct a mussel heath status assessment (part of FWS nationwide funding project). Large tributaries to the Klamath. Could collect eDNA samples if interested.
• Almeta Helmig (Nevada) – mentioned her work planning to use RMRS samples and repurposing for 3 mussel species.
• Update from Tyler Beals (Yakama Nation)
• Tribe involved in freshwater mussel recovery opportunistically with lamprey salvage efforts in Yakima River (Sunnyside canal).
• 2015-2020 – Headgate shut off occurs annually on Oct 20th. 725 live mussels upstream and downstream of the fish screens have been salvaged and relocated in Yakima River. Mostly western pearlshell, however in 2021 there were western ridged mussels.
• October 2021 they PIT tagged 100 western pearlshell mussels.  There were 4 release groups (in the canal-upstream and downstream of the fish screens) and in the Yakima river (above and below PIT array). Overall goal is to monitor long term survival, movements, and understand overall mussel population in the canal.
• In 2018, started collecting empty shells to age (University of Idaho – Chris Caudill). Identified shell condition. Lots of predator activity beaver, raccoon, mink, and otter.
• Update from Dorene MacCoy (City of Boise – WQ division):
• Summarized efforts described previously in October 2021 meeting.
• Flow model (Lidar; 2D model) overlaying with habitat suitability curves for fish and mussels
• Attempted to capture/detect breeding timing by examining fins, gills, etc but no luck.
• Expressed interest in how to detect glochidia and describe breeding timing.
• Fall of 2022 – Tentatively planning on a workshop with a mussel symposium as part of the PNW Society for Freshwater Science meeting.

PNW Native Freshwater Mussel Workgroup
Quarterly Meeting
Friday, October 29, 2021 Pacific Time
Zoom Meeting

• PNW Workgroup October 2021 Minutes
• Agenda and Minutes:

Updates from Idaho (Ryan Blackadar, Dorene MacCoy, Joel Sauder)

Ryan Blackadar (USFWS IFWO): Bruneau River mussel mania in September (4 agencies, 13 people), western ridged mussels, found and PIT tagged 62, plus 1 western pearlshell, 40 collected haphazardly and opportunistic, 22 in quadrats and transects to get density estimates (0.37/m2), measured (29-76mm sizes), future work to do a long-term study in the area, plan to continue tagging mussels
also work on Sawtooth NF and NRA- surveys for mussels, also worked with IDFG to analyze archive eDNA samples on Salmon River for a research trip, intend to continue collaboration in 2022, including eDNA (plus Idaho Power and City of Boise). Hoping to collaborate with Shoshone Bannock and Idaho State University
 did not make it to Weiser River this year, so high on list to revisit

 Joel Sauder, (IDFG): eDNA samples from RMRS and collected for other purposes to be sampled for mussels, expanding across ID for next round
o Joel (IDFG): Rafted mainstem Salmon River (Corn Creek to Carey Creek boat ramp ~80miles of river) with Dave Stagliano and others, September 2021 (before water temps started to drop, ~15-17 C water temp)
 Building more capacity to work on western ridged mussel in 2022 and 2023.
 Spot checks, bucket transects, Snorkel & Dive (mini dive 10 minutes of air), length measurements (50mm to 90mm; most common 71-75mm), 1/4m quadrats (no randomization, variety of habitats)
 Wanted to confirm presence throughout the float (sampled every 2-3 miles)
 Observations of occupied/non-occupied habitat
 100% cobble and 100% sand habitats were poor & marginal habitat (contrasted prior literature observations)
 Most dense beds were observed out of the main current; fines in the interstitial spaces. Overall could find mussel with little effort. Reliably find mussels every couple miles over 80-mile stretch. Increasing mussel presence as moving down stream. Not many empty shells/no die offs anywhere.
 Measured ~ 1400 mussels. Seems like a good age/size spread. Not many smaller than 50mm.
 22 quadrats buried were 20-50% of surface count. No difference surface:buried mussel length
 5-40% sand; stabilized by cobble or boulders (angular block rock better); pockets behind large boulders; lower water velocities where depositional material can settle; inside bend of a channel
 SF Salmon River has abundant Western Pearlshell
 2022 & 2023 plans to repurpose eDNA data when possible all over Idaho to better assess distribution
 Elizabeth Torrey: Clear bottomed raft and Kayaks? Would those help with ID or observations. JS: long-term issues with scratches. With a little experience ID is not problematic. Western pearlshell extend out of substrate while western ridged mussel is buried to valve. Bucket viewer seems easier than clear bottom rafts. PR-49 “pack raft” has no water draw and very maneuverable

Dorene MacCoy (City of Boise – WQ division): Sampling and monitoring team, monitors Boise River
 Search for mussels in the lower Boise River. Southwestern ID. Urbanized/suburban ID. River diverted upstream at Lucky Peak Dam to irrigate agriculture and returned to river downstream. Boise interested in freshwater mussels: Lander St and West Boise Water Renewal Facilities. Ammonia in EPA Clean Water standards updated in 2013. Decided to look for freshwater mussels in 2018 Boise River seems like amazing habitat.
 Figure 2013 EPA guidance (in waters >15C, early life stages of mussels)
 2019 worked with FWS-Dave Hopper in trout spawning reaches to look at detectability with eDNA at Loggers and Landers Creek.
 Visual and eDNA surveys
 Smithroot eDNA (3 sampling / efisher backpack style)
 Aging mussels (sent shells to Wisconsin lab)
 Chris Caudill (U of Idaho) – D. Nemeth sent shells and a grad student will be doing their thesis on aging?
 Fish Host evaluation (College of Idaho, potential host fish, vouchered 5 of each species (e.g., rainbow, brown, mountain whitefish, sculpin, dace to look at gills/fins)
 Flow model (Lidar; 2D model) overlaying with habitat suitability curves for fish and mussel
 USGS building an eDNA lab in Boise, not sure when it will be accepting submissions. (See another mention below.)

• updates from Utah (Kate Holcomb)
o eDNA Torrey Rodgers / Karin Mock (western pearlshell; floaters): generalization not a lot of density. Few mussel = low detection of freshwater mussels at a short distance from source individuals.
o Eric Wagner (UDWR) guide “Utah mollusk identification guide” available spring 2022
o New locations for western pearlshell! Beaver Creek, Summit County, UT. Just found new populations in Goose Greek (western pearlshell and floaters) and Mill Creek (Upper Bear).

Update from Yakima Basin, WA (Craig Haskell, USFWS)
o Yakama Nation has done the past work (WDFW – Elizabeth Torrey, U of Idaho)
o 2021 preliminary data from repurposing eDNA (lamprey samples ~65 samples)
o Developed proposal for entire basin for eDNA (shopping the proposal around)
o October 2021 – met with Yakima Nations at Sunnyside
o John Erhardt (IFWO) showed tagging techniques
o Annual dewatering salvaging lamprey, western pearlshell, western ridged mussel from side area to mainstem river
o Next steps: Toppenish Creek NWR develop long term monitoring station
o Expand eDNA sampling
o Collaboration (Yakama nation; U of Idaho) develop broad long term monitoring plan

eDNA planning and collaboration (Emilie Blevins Xerces Society, Courtney Newlon, USFWS)
o PNW workgroup members have long been involved in eDNA sampling efforts for mussels
o increasing interest by agencies, tribes, and other organizations to collect eDNA samples
o many people get in touch with RMRS and eDNAtlas to process these samples, but others do not, concern about duplicate efforts
o large library of samples at RMRS that could be rerun for mussels
o Courtney, Emilie, and staff at NGC and RMRS spoke about efforts to coordinate:
 review where sampling has occurred
 identify where sampling would be valuable
 coordinate to share this with people who contact about sampling, and others
o opportunity to share your projects, select areas of interest to pursue sampling
o more information in early 2022
o Bruce mentioned metabarcoding project from PNW USFS and a new project that will include mussels. Also noted that samples online don’t mean mussels aren’t present
o Alexa-CTUIR is using the atlas to select sites for sampling (100+samples per subbasin within CTUIR ceded territory, 70+ samples already)
o Dorene- David Pilliod is building a USGS eDNA lab in Boise (sister to Wisconsin USGS lab).

 Western ridged mussel SSA status (Courtney Newlon, USFWS)
o positive 90-day finding published this year (July 2021)
o next step is the Species Status Assessment that describes the status and provides information to be used in the 12-month finding determination
o 12-month finding will be published 9/30/24. Courtney is the lead for the SSA, still organizing internally for each state’s leads. Partners will get a letter of notification next year. Any georeferenced data please submit, and there will be a data call for each state likely early next year.
o Joel asked about deadline for information that will go into the process (Courtney doesn’t know yet—one of her key questions)? Joel is hoping for 1-2 field seasons to be able to provide survey data to the USFWS. Courtney does not expect the date to be flexible based on conversations internally. She will be able to provide a drop-dead date. Joel mentioned that IDFG got permission to use Section 6 funding to do their surveys in 2021. Hard to time funding cycle with the current timeline and need more time.
o Craig asked what the most important data is for the SSA. Courtney says when the USFWS ES teams from multiple states meet that they will be able to identify the best data needs. SSA development is built for as much data as available for a species.

Western mussel visual survey protocol development (Emilie Blevins, Xerces Society)
o Opportunity to align data collection, improve comparability of results, data collection to support conservation, distribution data gaps remain
o Urgent need for more than just presence/absence, can maximize survey efforts
o Protocols suitable for other states not well-suited to western mussels/rivers
o Intent is to adapt existing methods and utilize emerging technologies
o Initial core team: USFWS, BLM, CTUIR, Xerces
o Review of existing methods, develop common terminology and establish basic metrics
o Identify range of habitats and assemblages for testing
o Testing and feedback stages, revision
o Survey protocol rollout for use
o Joel interested in field testing next summer, Dorene as well-said we need a good monitoring protocol.

Effects of fire on a California mussel bed (Andy Lawrence)
o Andy is working on Fort Hunter Ligett along central California coast, studying effects of fire and sedimentation in addition to mussel surveys. Presented on 2021 observation of impacts to mussel bed. Post fire – heavy rains, increased runoff and basically buried the mussels.
o Elizabeth asked if it was the sedimentation definitely that impacted the mussels. Andy said they definitely would have been buried under several feet of sediment but also exposed to VOCs after the fire. They didn’t find any live mussels. Elizabeth also asked about any examples for mussels resurfacing after extreme burial? Andy wondered if maybe they did make it to the surface and were predated by raccoons. Previously the bed was protected in the deep water.

 Meeting ran up to the two-hour mark, save discussions of FMCS symposium, workgroup social media for next meeting. Thanks everyone!

PNWNFWMG_June_2021_Minutes
Wednesday June 16, 2021
PNW Native freshwater Mussel Workgroup:
13:00 – 14:15

Chair: Emilie Blevins Xerces Society

Attendees: Kevin Aitkin, William Gerth, David Stagliano, Dorene, Kaegan Scully-Engelmeyer, Cynthia Tait, Ann Gannam, Coutrney Newlon, Rob Plotnikoff, Elizabeth Torrey, Liz Bockstiegl, Aleaxa Main, Stephen Bollen Celeste Mazzacano, Sarah Hoyle, Denise Dammann, Christine O’Brian, Doug Nemeth , Hope Reiden, Michelle Anderson, Craig’s iphone, 360-789-6355, Trevor Griffins, IAmm1477, Miranda Plumb, Maureen Smith Michael Stephenson , Rblackadar, Ron Constable, Asako (Mollalla River Watch), Gsausen, Julie Tyson, Sharon Selvaggio, F Teal Waterstrat*,

1. Kaegan Scully-Engelmeyer on his graduate research @ PSU involving western pearlshell in coastal Oregon streams.
PPT provided and presentation by Dr. Scully-Engelmeyer. Framed in NWFP
Chemicals in forest management primarily for regenerative harvest.

Q&A:
Dorene (Boise) larger mussels below larger catchments? Catchment is defined as a drainage size/area…essentially larger drainages have larger mussels
Were glochidia encountered on host fish? No, we did not survey for glochidia presence. Temperature and distribution…? Linked to reproduction and parasitism of fish and there are a lot more questions to investigate, especially in systems with multiple salmonids with different temperature tolerances/preferences.

R. Plotnikoff: Pools Boulders and ??fish presence??: Is there a correlation between fish presence and physical in the coat debris flows and pulses common and stable substrates are rarer and higher up in system. It may not be that its where they reproduce, but where they are pushed to lower in the streams.
Bolted LWD structures from 1990’s might provide interesting insights into if mussels are moved to stable habitat or if they settled into created stable habitat.

2. Alexa Maine CTUIR mussel master plan.

CTUIR developed a Columbia Basin Freshwater mussel master plan. Studying propagation in Walla Walla. Developing plan for supplementations of Native Freshwater Mussels for selected drainages but finding should be applicable throughout the range/region of native mussels. Several agencies commented on document and it should be finalized by the end of the year. Alexa also presented at an NCTC webinar if you missed it (cultural and regional information).

Q&A: E. Torrey: WDFW: over the course of ~20 years and moving into restoration phase is there anything surprising/interesting to share. Alexa: documented declines and ongoing synthesis should model suitable Habitat. Most populations have declines with several outliners that have increased.

3. FMCS Division development (information attached)
Emily Blevins: Shared relevant documents (attached); FMCS interested in partnering with regional mollusk conservation groups. Looked at other national and international organizations to understand the structure. Best options are similar to AFS structure.
FMCS subdivide into geographic division or expertise. Can vary in number and spread. Currently regional divisions currently in existence. Current western division proposed. Somewhat analogous to Wendall Haag’s Freshwater mussel zones. The workgroup would have national and international recognition and bring in freshwater snails. Some interest and support for inclusion of western terrestrial mollusks. Have a voice in FCMS national and international statements and prioritization, to funding source, travel, meeting hosting, etc.
Allows for 2 levels of engagement as division. 1. FMCS member that pays dues. 2. Opportunity to continue as participatory member on regional listserv (no votes, discounts, meeting perks).
Uncertainly around how annual dues are divided to divisions…likely based on division enrollment.
By Laws for each division are developed/outlined.
Q/A Elizabeth Torrey: Any drawbacks? Emilie: dues limiting membership/engagement, and if the Western Division disagrees with the parent (FMCS) statements.
Rob Plotnikoff: excited about restarting formal meetings and sharing information.

August 15th due date for comments. Will be reviewed a November 2021 FCMS executive meeting. Potential to roll out at 2023 FCMS meeting in Portland as a “division” or chapter.

Close at 14:15

DRAFT FMCS DIVISIONS PROPOSED LANGUAGE
April 13, 2021

Contact: Emilie Blevins: [email protected]

Benefits to Becoming a Division

● As a formally-recognized Division within FMCS, our membership will have the opportunity to directly contribute to FMCS committees and initiatives (such as the National Strategy) that directly support critical research and conservation efforts. We will have voting representation for FMCS matters, and our membership will also benefit from the reputation and profile of this international society.
● Our Division will be supported by top researchers and professionals in the field, providing opportunities for networking, technical assistance, collaboration, and continuing education.
● Our Division will be more inclusive and representative of broader freshwater mollusk conservation efforts by formally adopting a geography and including researchers and advocates of our two most imperilled species groups.
● Division creation and membership will increase funding for Division freshwater mussel and snail conservation efforts. FMCS membership dues and meeting registration fees will go to support Division initiatives, including funding meetings, projects, and travel or membership scholarships as voted on by our members.
● In becoming a Division of an established 501(c)(3), we will gain the ability to accept donations without assuming additional administrative or financial burden.
● Membership is open to those individuals who are members of the Society in good standing (“active membership”) and who are located within the geographical area or request membership in it. At least 6 members of the Division shall be members of the Society. Membership and participation is also open to non-Society members as long as they adhere to the purpose of the Division and Society (“participatory membership”). However, only active members may cast votes or serve in a Division office, including committee leadership within the Division.

FMCS BY-LAWS
Section 5.18: Committees. The Standing Committees shall be: Insert: “Divisions”

FMCS PROCEDURES MANUAL

Section 3.0. Committees Insert: 3.X “Divisions”

Geographical units of FMCS are groups of Society members who are located in the geographic region and/or are interested in the conservation of freshwater mollusks of a given geography, and who conduct activities that serve the objectives of and represent the Society. Activities and procedures of units are considered procedures of the Society, and must follow Society By-laws and Procedures. Geographical units may include Divisions, as well as other subunits adopted by the Society. A geographical unit of the Society may be authorized by the Board if it is considered likely to provide a worthwhile and long-term service to the Society with respect to the purpose of committees. The organizing unit within the Society shall be a Division, which is a geographical unit that applies to broad regions that may represent faunal distributions or political boundaries adopted by the Board.

Division Organization and Board Representation

● The Society’s initial Divisions shall be established by the Board in collaboration with the Division Standing Committee, following Society By-laws and Procedures.

● Society members will automatically be assigned to a Division based on residence within the geographic area but may request membership within a different Division by providing the request in writing to the President.
● New or revised Divisions may be proposed by providing the request in writing to the President and may be adopted following Society By-laws and Procedures.
● A Division may be dissolved should it fail to comply with, or overtly contravene, its own by-laws or the Society’s By-laws and Procedures, or if it otherwise ceases to be an active, effective arm of the Society.
● Divisions shall be represented on the Board of Directors through a Standing Committee Chair. The Division Standing Committee Chair shall be selected by members of the Division Standing Committee.
● Members of the Division Standing Committee shall be those Society members who serve as the Chair for their respective Division and shall operate according to Society By-laws and Procedures, with respect to Standing Committee requirements therein.
● Division members may create smaller organizational subunits to serve its purposes, but these subunits shall not act without Division approval.

Division Operation

● Within a Division, a Division Chair shall serve as the voting member of the Division Standing Committee on behalf of the Division.
● Only active FMCS members may serve as the Division Chair or hold any other unit office. Among its elected offices, each Division must have at least a Division Chair, Past Division Chair (once a Division has achieved this milestone), and a Division Chair-Elect.
● Each Division shall follow established By-Laws, which must be approved by the FMCS Board according to the Society By-laws.
● A Division may hold meetings, sponsor symposia, disseminate information, adopt resolutions, and engage in other activities that advance Society objectives and conform to the Society’s By-laws and Procedures. Actions and resolutions of a Division shall be identified only with that Division unless formally adopted by the Society or another Division.

Division Geographies

The following Divisions shall be adopted:

● European Division: countries of Albania, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Montenegro, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, and United Kingdom.
● Western North American Division: U.S. states of Alaska, Washington, Idaho, Oregon, Montana, Utah, Nevada, California, and Arizona and the Canadian province of British Columbia.
● Upper Mississippi River Division:
● Ohio River Valley Division (includes Tennessee-Cumberland; Upper Ohio snail?):
● Chesapeake Bay Division:
● Interior Highlands Division:
● Southern U.S. Division: state of Texas
● Great Plains Division:
● St. Lawrence-Great Lakes Division (includes Ontario):
● Lower Mississippi Division:
● Eastern Gulf Division:
● Mobile Basin Division:
● Southern Atlantic Division:
● Northeastern U.S. Division:

● Other non-North American

Division Dues and Financial Support

A portion of annual dues shall be made available as financial support of activities and services performed by Divisions that directly benefit Society members in their respective geographic regions. These funds shall not exceed 13% of the annual dues paid by Regular members and may be a smaller percentage if the Board deems it financially prudent to allocate a lesser proportion.

● The amount available to an individual Division shall be proportionally based on the number of active Regular members affiliated with that unit.
● The Society shall maintain funds on a biennial basis for Divisions. Funds shall be allocated to a Division for a specific purpose following Society Procedures for Funding of Society or Committee Initiatives.

Division By-laws and Procedures

Division By-laws and Procedures shall be developed by the Division Standing Committee in accordance with Society By-laws and Procedures. Division By-laws and Procedures shall require Board approval within the first year of an established Division.

Draft Division By-laws and Procedures–Example Only

BY-LAWS OF THE FRESHWATER MOLLUSK CONSERVATION
SOCIETY [division name]
INTRODUCTION
The Western North American Division of the Freshwater Mollusk Conservation Society (FMCS) has been established through the FMCS’ By-laws for the purpose of carrying out the objectives of the Society and its Division Standing Committee, particularly for the purposes of facilitating the implementation of the National Strategy for the Conservation of Native Freshwater Mollusks.
DIVISION GEOGRAPHY AND MEMBERSHIP
Membership is open to those individuals who are members of the Society in good standing (“active membership”) and who are located within the geographical area or request membership in it. At least 6 members of the Division shall be members of the Society. Membership and participation is also open to non-Society members as long as they adhere to the purpose of the Division and Society (“participatory membership”). However, only active members may cast votes or serve in an office. Membership in the Western North American Division includes individuals from the geographical areas of the western U.S. states of Alaska, Washington, Idaho, Oregon, Montana, Utah, Nevada, California, and Arizona and Canadian province of British Columbia. Division activities and services shall focus on the freshwater mollusk fauna in this geographical area.
All FMCS members residing in places identified in this geographical area are automatically members of the Division. FMCS members may elect to be a member of another Division following Society Procedures. Only a Society member of the Division, in good standing, may be a voting member, hold office, or chair a committee.
All members, whether active or only participatory, shall adhere to the Society’s Code of Conduct as it applies to attendees of FMCS-sponsored symposia, workshops, meetings, or other FMCS activities (events).
ORGANIZATION
1. Only active FMCS members in good standing for at least two years may serve as the Division Chair or hold any other Division office, including committee leadership within the Division. The Division shall be represented on the Society Board through the Division Standing Committee. A Division shall hold the following offices:

● Division Chair, who shall:
○ Serve as the Society’s voting member on behalf of the Division. The Division Chair may further represent the Division Standing Committee as the Standing Committee’s chair, according to Society By-laws and Procedures.
○ Preside at regular and special meetings of the Division.
○ Represent the Division at meetings of other organizations where official representation of the Division is desirable.
○ Provide leadership for programs and activities for the Division during the term of office.
○ Submit an Annual Report of Division activities to the Society’s Division Standing Committee Chair.
○ Automatically advance to Past Division Chair at the conclusion of the term of office.
● Past Division Chair, who shall:
○ Provide assistance with Division functions as needed.
● Division Chair-Elect, who shall:
○ Succeed to the office of the Chair and carry out those duties if the Chair is unable to do so.
○ Automatically advance to Division Chair at the conclusion of the term of office.
2. Other duties or offices, including those related to keeping minutes of meetings or carrying out financial duties can be established by a nomination and vote by the Division elected offices.
3. The term of elected officers shall be for two years following the Society’s biennium calendar.
4. A nominating committee shall be established for the purposes of voting for officer positions. Other standing committees shall be established by the Division officers for the purpose of addressing specific Division needs or activities, such as a symposium committee, subregional committee addressing specific fauna or goals, etc. For any standing committee, a committee chair shall be appointed, and this individual shall be responsible for reporting their committees’ activities, findings, and recommendations at annual and interim meetings of the Division. Division committees shall work in close coordination with comparable committees of the Society.
OPERATIONS

Governance Procedures and Voting
The Past Division Chair shall oversee a nominations committee consisting of no less than three (3) nor more than (5) Division members. Newly nominated candidates may not serve on the nominations committee. Selection of the committee members shall be completed no later than the first Division meeting of each calendar year and duly recorded. The full final nominations committee must approve the slate of officer candidates.
Candidates for elected officer positions shall be nominated by the nominations committee, including considering requests of members or self-nominations of membership. Officers shall be elected by a majority of ballots cast from the membership.
Elected officers shall be elected by majority vote by Division members in good standing by mail, electronic mail, or a secure internet voting site during a specified time period for the vote to be received by the committee in charge of counting the votes.
Any officer may be removed, with or without cause, by members of the Society Board according to FMCS Procedures. Any officer may resign at any time by giving written notice to the FMCS Board, President or the Secretary. Any such resignation shall take effect at the time specified therein; and unless

otherwise specified therein, the acceptance of a resignation shall not be necessary to make it effective. The officer shall be replaced according to Society By-laws and Procedures.
Decisions at a meeting of the Division shall be by a majority of those voting except in the case of amendments to the by-laws or as otherwise specified in the latest edition of Robert’s Rules of Order.
Meetings
The Division shall meet at least once every two years at a time and place (may be virtual) decided at least six months in advance by the Division officers. Quarterly or special meetings may be held at the discretion of the Division officers. When mutually agreeable, the Division may meet jointly with other organizations or with other units of the Society in accordance with the Society Procedures. A quorum at a meeting of the Division for the transaction of official business shall be at least 6 members in good standing.
Actions and resolutions of a Division shall be identified only with that Division unless formally adopted by the Society or another Division.
Outreach
The Division may maintain independent materials, such as a website, listserv, or other platform to promote Division activities and services within the geographic area and/or among membership. Any such materials shall adhere to the purposes and spirit of the Society as set forth in the Society By-laws.
AMENDMENTS
These By-laws are the defining document for the Division and cannot be suspended and cannot be changed without prior notice to active members as follows. By-laws can be amended at any time throughout the year. An amendment to the By-laws may be proposed in writing to the Officers at least ninety (90) days prior to a scheduled Division meeting. If the proposed amendment is supported by at least one Officer, the proposed amendment will be distributed to all active members sixty (60) days prior to the next annual meeting, and will be open for discussion and voted on at that meeting. The amendment is consummated and ratified when approved by at least two thirds of the voting members, provided the number of voting members at the meeting constitutes a quorum.
INDEMNIFICATION
Each person who is or was an Officer of the Division, including the heirs, executors, administrators, or estate of such person, shall be indemnified by the Division to the full extent permitted or authorized by the laws of the State of Missouri, as now in effect and as hereafter amended, against any liability, judgment, fine, amount paid in settlement, costs and expenses including attorney’s fees, incurred as a result of any claim arising in connection with such person’s conduct in his or her capacity, or in connection with his or her status, as an Officer of the Division. The indemnification provided by this By-law provision shall not be exclusive of any other rights to which he may be entitled under any other By-laws or agreement, vote of disinterested Officers, or otherwise, and shall not limit in any way any
right that the Division may have to make different or further indemnification with respect to the same or different person or classes of persons.
PERSONAL LIABILITY

The members and Officers of the Division shall not be personally liable for any debt, liability or obligation of the Division. All persons, corporations or other entities extending credit to, contracting with, or having any claim against, the Division, may look only to the funds and property of the Division for the payment of any such contract or claim, or for the payment of any debt, damages, judgment or decree, or of any money that may otherwise become due or payable to them from the Division.

PNW Native Freshwater Mussel Workgroup

Quarterly Meeting Minutes (click here for a link to pdf copy of the minutes)

Monday, December 7 at 1:00 Pacific Time

Attendees: Emilie Blevins, Kris Schidel, Jennifer Poirier, Michele Weaver, Patty Morrison, Al Smith, Jodi Bluhm, Rebecca Paradis, Dave Cowles, Laura Johnson, Joel Sauder, Ali Helmig, Elizabeth Torrey, Kevin Aitkin, RD Nelle, Marie Winkowski, Sarina Jepsen, John Hineburg, Fred Haskell, Teal Waterstrat, John Erhardt, Alexa Maine, Courtney Newlon, Julie Tyson, Celeste Mazzacano, Trevor Griffiths, Barbara Kelly

1. An update on the FMCS virtual symposium (Patty Morrison)

Alexa and Patty are on the planning committee for the 2021 FMCS virtual symposium, following the postponement of the Portland meeting until 2023. The symposium will be April 12-14, 2021. It will include a combination of live presentations and asynchronous presentations that can be viewed on your own time. Presentation formats include traditional 12 minute, 5 minute lightning, and recorded poster presentations. The goal is to share information among the freshwater mollusk community. The FMCS newsletter provides information, and Patty has some additional updates she can share with the listserv. Registration will be $20 for members and $5 for students. This is a great opportunity for folks to join FMCS. Laura asked: if someone had submitted an abstract to present to the PNW mussel symposium, would they need to submit a new abstract. Patty said that this is a completely different meeting and the process will be different. Folks should submit abstracts following guidelines for the new symposium call for abstracts.

2. USFWS email issue (Emilie Blevins)

During the 2020 transition of USFWS email providers, it appears that workgroup members with USFWS emails lost access. It looks like re-subscribing these email addresses to the listserv is working. Workgroup members should check that listserv emails are not being marked as spam. Also, if you think you may no longer be receiving workgroup emails or would like to subscribe using a different email address, just email the workgroup chair.

3. A recap of the recent USFWS staff internal agency mussel meeting (Courtney Newlon)

Following the petition for listing Gonidea angulata, USFWS wanted to increase internal communication about Service-led mussel projects, expertise, or information. Courtney Newlon, Doug Nemeth, Teal Waterstrat, and Miranda Plumb of USFWS collaborated to form an internal FWS workgroup. The goals are to identify priorities and share information among Region 9 USFWS staff interested in freshwater mussels. The group had its first brief meeting September 29. Some people in the group are new to mussels while others may have been working with them for years. Down the road, the intent is to collaborate on setting USFWS regional priorities and plans. There is also a national USFWS mussel working group as part of the fisheries program. Ann Gannam and Doug are contacts for this in the region. The national USFWS mussel workgroup has a strong propagation (hatchery and culture) focus. The plan for the Region 9 group is to meet at least annually, and otherwise as needed.

Rob asked about the differences between the USFWS group and the PNW native mussel group. Courtney clarified that it is an internal agency group for OR, WA, and ID (DOI Region 9/Legacy Region 1). Because it is internal, she can report out from those meetings but it is aiming for FWS staff. Rob also asked if it is affiliated with the webinar series. Courtney said that it is not affiliated with the series, as that is through the FMCS and USFWS NCTC. However, she agreed that they are a great resource. Rob is pleased to hear about this and there’s a lot of interest in his area. Courtney can connect Rob to who in FWS in Snohomish might be working on mussels. Teal said he is probably the closest geographically to the Snohomish and could talk with Rob more.

4. Introduction of new WA state mussel biologist (Marie Winkowski)

Marie has a new role at WDFW as of March: Washington’s native freshwater fish and shellfish specialist in the fish management division. For people who knew Molly Hallock, this is a version of her position. Marie will be helping to coordinate freshwater mussel work within WDFW. Similar to the USFWS effort, she is looking to coordinate with agency staff and review at data collection efforts. She will share her email address with workgroup members. Teal said congratulations on the new job!

Rob brought up the topic of recreational mussel harvest in Washington and wondered if it is an issue or allowed since he is aware of crayfish harvest. Teal and Kevin said it is prohibited in WA and OR. Sarina pointed out from Xerces’ petition that recreational harvest of western freshwater mussels by the general public is prohibited in Washington and Oregon’s fishing regulations. Nevada, Idaho, and California do not prohibit recreational harvest. Ali said in Nevada she doesn’t know of any recreational harvest issues. Emilie brought up the workgroup’s discussion last year about recreational mussel harvest in Idaho and about reaching out to the state-may want to revisit this.

5. Discussion of past (Elwha) and future (Enloe) dam removals and mussels (Teal Waterstrat, Rebecca Paradis, Dave Cowles)

Elwha: Dave became interested in mussels around the time that the Elwha dams were being taken out. Pre-removal surveys found no mussels in the river above the lower dam, which could be due to the fact that the Elwha dam has blocked salmonid migration for so long or because flow of fine sediments has been restricted by the Glines Canyon dam upstream so there was not much habitat for them. There are not many side tributaries above the lower dam (Little River, Indian Creek). No mussels were found in a survey of several miles of Little River, although Anodonta mussels were present in Lake Sutherland, which is drained by Indian Creek. His surveys found a few hundred western pearlshell mussels in the lower river scattered over several spots between the Elwha Dam and a water diversion by a fish raising facility. They also found ~5,000 mussels near the river, in and around the water diversion in an area that was going to be bulldozed and dewatered. This area is just north of the WDFW Chinook hatchery. Fisheries biologists were unsure of moving the mussels into the upstream tributary, so volunteers could only move them near the mouth of the river. Those assisting included NPS, FWS and WDFW staff, Lower Elwha Klallam tribal fisheries biologists, Peninsula College students, and others. Mussels were transported to some of the side channel areas and were tagged and measured. Dave’s group found one year later that there was high predation in the shallow transplant area. Additionally, in the second winter there was a major flood that obliterated the habitat the mussels were in and they were wiped out. The waterworks are now quite different than they were (dry most of the time now). Dave is interested if mussels are left there and would like to survey there and below the dams.

Rebecca is a biologist with the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe and actually helped as a student with the translocation. She has not found live western pearlshell in Indian Creek, just shells. She has not seen any live western pearlshell anywhere in the watershed. She has seen floaters in Lake Sutherland and in a beaver pond below the lake. She has also seen western pearlshell in the nearby Lyre River, which drains Lake Crescent and is not directly connected to the Elwha watershed. Pat Crain and his crew from NPS are also keeping their eyes open for mussels. Rebecca is applying for a tribal wildlife grant to look for mussels, to do eDNA, and is interested in translocation efforts if they are not found. She and Dave discussed collaborating on future efforts.

Teal said it is exciting that mussels have been refound in the watershed and is an interesting opportunity to study what has happened since dam removal. He asked if Rebecca works with Mike McHenry (she said yes).

Dave asked about how thoroughly Indian Creek has been surveyed. Rebecca said she has been up and down many times and seen lots of otters. Habitat is really slow, fine sediment. She commented it seems like strange habitat for western pearlshell. She has not surveyed below the Elwha dam or a few hundred yards above the diversion, where they used to be. One of the places where mussels were relocated ended up being inundated with feet of sediment.

Dave commented on an emergency salvage of 200 mussels in the river at the diversion where they had dewatered, although the mussels may not have survived. Rebecca mentioned she is curious if there were mussels above the dam. If they live a long time, why wouldn’t there be a remnant population?

Dave said he surveyed between the dams but didn’t survey above Glines Canyon Dam before the dam removal. The river bed between the dams was mostly coarse cobble with little fine sediment, so they could have been washed out. He was hoping to find them near the upper end of Lake Aldwell where the highway crosses the river because some watered side channels, but did not find any there either. He has not conducted any surveys above Lake Mills. Rebecca may target that with eDNA.

Enloe: There is renewed interest in the removal of Enloe Dam on the Similkameen River, Okanogan County WA. Previously, WDFW investigated the impacts suction dredging on freshwater mussels in Similkameen River and sampled sites above and below Enloe Dam. The dam may be removed in the future. The study was 15 years ago but it is possible no one has returned to visit those sites. Teal thought it would be a unique opportunity to look above and below, as well as to implement post-dam removal monitoring and provide conservation recommendations for the removal itself. Teal did contact the authors of the paper (Kruger et al. 2007) to let them know. He is unsure when the dam removal would occur.

RD said that his office is engaged in work in the area. He has done a fair bit of bull trout sampling in that area. His group will try to be engaged in the project. John said he is familiar with the Sinlahekin, which flows into Palmer Lake then into the Similkameen. He said there are healthy populations of all 3 genera of freshwater mussel further upstream. The dam was built on top of an existing waterfall, and it would be important to track sediment moving from the site. There is not much of a reservoir, and it is mostly filled in. In the past there were proposals to consider increasing the height instead of removal, although those proposals may not be on the table anymore. There are native fish above the dam, and during glaciation, the river had many different courses. Unsure how long the river has taken its current course, but probably thousands of years. Rob said the dam was built in 1923. He thinks one of the things we are missing is age class information to understand whether mussel communities are self-sustaining. Dave said he tried to do that at the Elwha by looking at shell rings. They used other estimates correlating length to age of mussels and found a wide range of sizes. At the hatchery, there was an abrupt cutoff at a particular size. The site had been dewatered in 1970, and that seemed to correlate with the size distribution. They also found what they thought were 110-year-old mussels in the river. However, western pearlshell can grow much faster in some warmer streams.

Laura said that it’s important to look at recent reproduction and smaller age classes. The size to age ratio is best for those smaller age classes. For juvenile Anodonta and Margaritifera she found this to be consistent. Growth seems very dependent on food and temperature, and that differs across rivers. Rob said that Celeste’s talk at PNW SFS suggested that different basins may have different age/shell length correlations, and Celeste agreed that it needs additional study. Laura measured mussels in the Umpqua basin and especially the South Umpqua. She found that the North Umpqua is much colder but that mussels trended old and small. In warmer and more nutrient rich water, the better growth rates. Emilie mentioned that Oregon State has some equipment that is useful for aging mussels.

Rob also brought up the Kettle River, which he called the twin to the Similkameen. Someone has studied mussels there from a BC research group. It doesn’t have a dam but does have falls that are impassible part of the year. He thought it might be good to study in the future.

6. Emilie shared the following City of Boise update, provided to her by Dorene MacCoy

Dorene is working with Dave Hopper from FWS in Idaho to develop a statewide mussel group to deal with issues in our political jurisdiction. She is also hoping to plan additional monitoring (both visual and eDNA data collection) on the Boise River next year. She is working on a monitoring plan with Matt Laramie with USGS Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center (FRESC) and David Pilliod, the local eDNA experts in Boise.

7. An update on PNW/FMCS affiliation (Emilie Blevins)

Emilie provided an update from the last discussion regarding the PNW Native Freshwater Mussel Workgroup/Freshwater Mollusk Conservation Society (FMCS) affiliation. During 2020, members of the FMCS ad hoc “Chapters” committee, representatives from the ExCom and interested regional mussel groups met on various occasions to review possible structures for developing regional subunits under the FMCS umbrella. These included interviews with representatives of the American Fisheries Society (AFS) (national and Western Division), the International Association of Landscape Ecology, and a nonprofit lawyer, Michelle Anderson. The issues considered include liability, fiscal agency, administrative burden, independence of units, and participation. Five legal and fiscal structures were evaluated for these issues. The recommendation of the committee is to pursue establishment of committees, referred to as “Divisions,” to parallel the AFS unit structure, rather than to establish legally separate “Chapters” that would be subject to IRS scrutiny. If it is agreed upon by the FMCS board to proceed with Division formation and if regional groups are amenable to the approach, the Chapters ad hoc committee could next draft language for the Society’s bylaws using the AFS template constitution as a template: https://fisheries.org/about/ governance/constitution-and-rules/.

Emilie discussed the next steps for developing the affiliation, which includes developing the specific by-laws and structure for both the workgroup as a Division and for the parent society of FMCS. She requested feedback from workgroup members on the approach, including the discussion of becoming dues-paying members of FMCS (the plan, but perhaps with an “introductory rate”) and in maintaining the listserv for people to keep up to date on mussel news, even if they do not intend to become FMCS members.

Rob asked about how aligned the Division’s regional goals would be with FMCS. Emilie replied that they are interested in our region, and we would work to collaborate on issues. Michele also brought up that FMCS also covers freshwater snails. She asked if we become a regional division, would that mean we expand our focus to include snails. Emilie said that yes, this would expand the focus, although we could have subgroups within the Division focused on specific topics or issues.

Kevin brought up how transitioning is important because we have had challenges with being able to accept and hold money to support our initiatives, including holding meetings. He thinks that we should consider incorporating terrestrial mollusks, too. Patty commented that there are some people in FMCS working on land snails. One of the workshops they hosted in Alabama included a session on land snail ID. Folks with those interests are more than welcome.

Kevin brought up that it has been at least 4 years since we started working on this transition, and he thinks this is a good path forward. Emilie will provide more information after following up with the FMCS board. The workgroup can start collaborating on the specifics of the Division affiliation. More information soon.

8. Other business

Dave asked if anyone is aware of an eDNA test for Corbicula. Someone mentioned that WSU might have an assay. The contact suggested was Karen Goldberg. Kelly Careem from RMRS was also suggested.PNW Workgroup December 2020 Minutes