The effect of climate change on Dreissena polymorpha, a multiregional invasive species in North America

Abstract

To study the effect of climate change across different latitudinal gradients on an aquatic invasive species in North America, filtration rates of Dreissena polymorpha were examined as part of a manipulative experiment. We took into consideration three regions across North America that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicts to experience different increases in temperature by the year 2100. These three climates were simulated at the University of Michigan Biological Station in Pellston, MI and used as habitats for D. polymorpha. The effect of climate change was taken into consideration by measuring the chlorophyll A concentration at current average lake temperatures and temperatures adjusted for climate change predictions. We found that only the trials run at the mid-latitudinal region (Douglas Lake of Pellston, MI) showed a significant difference between D. polymorpha filtration rates at current and predicted climate change temperatures. We did not see a significant difference in filtration rates between the environments at current and predicted climate change temperatures at the higher (Flindt Lake of Ignace, ON) or lower (Lake Placid of Lake Placid, FL) latitudinal region. In addition, we examined the differences in D. polymorpha filtration rates due to increased temperature between the three latitudinal regions. Upon analysis of our data, we did not find a significant difference in this respect.