SYMPOSIUM PRESENTER TITLE: Native mussels of the Lower Wisconsin Riverway ABSTRACT: The Lower Wisconsin Riverway is home to 40 of the 50 mussel species known statewide. This diversity of mussels is directly related to the diversity of aquatic habitats in the river, from riverine channels to side channels to backwaters and their associated wetlands. Thirteen species, or roughly 33% of the mussels in the lower riverway, are state or federally listed as threatened, endangered, or special concern. A critical link for the future of these mussels is the fishes of the river, as mussels require a host fish to complete their life cycle. For example, a very special mussel in the lower riverway--the salamander mussel--uses the mudpuppy as its only host. The fish species that mussels rely on for their continued existence require a diversity of habitats, including adjacent wetlands, for critical life stages. Increased flooding, followed by droughts and declining water quality in the river and adjacent wetlands, impacts both the fish species and the mussel populations. Although mussels have learned to survive ‘normal’ flooding by digging in, they don’t do as well when the entire bedload is picked up and moved by large and continuous flood events. Droughts are something mussels can’t readily avoid, and recent droughts have resulted in thousands of mussels left high and dry and dead. These changing conditions in the riverway and their wetlands directly impact both fish and mussel populations. BIO: Lisie Kitchel works in the Bureau of Natural Heritage Conservation of the Wisconsin DNR, where she has been for over 25 years. She is trained as an aquatic ecologist and spends most of her time working with our native freshwater mussels throughout the lakes, rivers, and streams of Wisconsin. Her passion is enlightening folks to the world of the freshwater mussel.