#FreshwaterPearlMussel
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Please allow us to share a marvellously magical moment on this mussel Monday!

The 5000th juvenile #FreshwaterPearlMussel bred here at the FBA Ark has been tagged, ready for release in the river Irt!

You can find out more about #SpeciesRecovery at the FBA Ark here:
www.fba.org.uk/freshwater-p...
July 21, 2025 at 5:17 PM
freshwaterbio.bsky.social
This Microscope Monday 🔬 for your #FreshwaterPearlMussel pleasure... we present some recently excysted juveniles.

The juveniles, from the #RiverIrt, #WestCumbria, will now be reared at the Ark (for 3 years min.) before being translocated back to their native river to reinforce the wild population.
November 10, 2025 at 6:03 PM
freshwaterbio.bsky.social
For #FreshwaterPearlMussel Monday... please allow us to share a spot of spring cleaning at the FBA Ark! Once buffed the mussels are settled back into their gravelly homes where they remain undisturbed throughout the breeding season.

Interested in finding out more?
www.fba.org.uk/freshwater-p...
May 18, 2026 at 5:26 PM
freshwaterbio.bsky.social
Did you know that #FreshwaterPearlMussel shell colour varies between populations & over time? 🖤🤎🧡💛🧡🤎🖤
Younger mussels typically have lighter, more golden-brown shells that darken as they mature with some adult mussels appearing close to black. Environmental conditions can also influence this colour.
September 16, 2026 at 5:00 PM
freshwaterbio.bsky.social
Hello freshwater friends... Today we are celebrating #FreshwaterPearlMussel Monday with an update from the FBA Ark!

Here at the FBA Ark tagging juvenile freshwater pearl mussels is an important activity as part of our species recovery programme.

Find out more 👇
www.fba.org.uk/fba-voice/ta...
October 13, 2025 at 3:31 PM
freshwaterbio.bsky.social
Greetings #FreshwaterPearlMussel friends! This Microscope Monday 🔬 we're excited to share with you an incredible image of a 34 month old #MargaritiferaMargaritifera from:
Understanding early life stages of the freshwater pearl mussel using scanning electron microscopy👇
www.fba.org.uk/fba-voice/un...
Understanding early life stages of the freshwater pearl mussel using scanning electron microscopy — Freshwater Biological Association
The freshwater pearl mussel is critically endangered, with many populations failing to reproduce successfully. Research led by Louise Lavictoire, FBA’s Head of Science revealed why the earliest life s...
www.fba.org.uk
December 15, 2025 at 6:28 PM
freshwaterbio.bsky.social
For #FreshwaterPearlMussel Monday... we are excited to share with you a magical moment filmed at the FBA Ark.

The film shows glochidial release from a female mussel from the River Clun, a priority river population for the FBA's species recovery programme.

More info:
www.fba.org.uk/freshwater-p...
September 8, 2025 at 4:48 PM
freshwaterbio.bsky.social
It is with great pleasure that we are sharing some #FreshwaterPearlMussel fascination this Microscope Monday 🔬 with fab new images of early stage #glochidia released from one of our female broodstock mussels.

Find out more about the FBA Freshwater Pearl Mussel Ark:
www.fba.org.uk/freshwater-p...
July 14, 2025 at 4:10 PM
freshwaterbio.bsky.social
Please allow us to share with you a recent update from the FBA Ark!

In September 2025, the FBA concluded a year-long #FreshwaterPearlMussel ‘silo trial’, assessing whether the rivers Esk and Kent would be suitable for population reinforcements of juvenile #mussels. 👇

www.fba.org.uk/articles/sur...
Survival of young freshwater pearl mussels: insights from in-situ experiments in two northern rivers — Freshwater Biological Association
Samantha Bonny is the FBA’s River Kent Project Officer and also works on the freshwater pearl mussel breeding programme. Here, Samantha and collaborators report on trials they ran to assess whether th...
www.fba.org.uk
January 20, 2026 at 6:21 PM
freshwaterbio.bsky.social
For fans of healthy freshwater habitats & mussels of the pearly kind... we have some excellent news to share with you!

This year will be the most successful year ever for our releases back to the wild of #FreshwaterPearlMussel since the FBA project started in 2007 😍👇

www.fba.org.uk/fba-voice/fr...
Freshwater pearl mussel recovery reaches new milestone to help restore wild populations — Freshwater Biological Association
This year has shaped up to be the most successful year for releases back to the wild of the freshwater pearl mussel since the project started back in 2007. In 2025, we reached the impressive target of...
www.fba.org.uk
September 2, 2026 at 5:29 PM
freshwaterbio.bsky.social
If you, like us, are passionate about pearl mussels... check out our July issue of FBA Voice!

With super exciting news from our #FreshwaterPearlMussel Ark plus an article about our #LakeDistrict Charr Recovery & Management project, and much more!

Dive into the FBA Voice:
mailchi.mp/fba/welcome-...
July 28, 2025 at 5:14 PM
freshwaterbio.bsky.social
Welcome to the January FBA Voice... including insights from a #freshwaterpearlmussel knowledge exchange trip to Sweden, a warm welcome to our new board members... & much more!

So for your freshwater pleasure we invite you to dive into the replenishing pond of FBA updates:
mailchi.mp/fba/welcome-...
Welcome to the January FBA Voice... this issue has oodles of updates for your new year freshwater pleasure! We have insights from FBA's Pearl Mussel Officer Ben King, following a knowledge exchange trip to Sweden last year, where he joined Dr Sebastian Rock, a post doctorate researcher from Karlstad University, to discover how Swedish LIFE Projects reintroduce mussels. We're also super excited to introduce, and extend a very warm welcome to Gavin Sorby, Tracey Griffiths, Jennifer Dodd and Tim Boden, our new board members! With their skills and experience we look forward to working together to inspire local and global action to protect freshwater ecosystems through science. We highly recommend reading the science article from FBA Fellow Glen George... A legacy of lead in a stormy future: the case of Ullswater in the English Lake District. Using the 1927 Greenside Mine disaster at Ullswater as a case study, Glen explains why the ongoing increase in the intensity of extreme weather events could lead to the re-emergence of water quality problems that were thought to have been resolved. And if you, like us, are passionate about freshwater species conservation, check out our job opportunity! We’re looking for a dynamic leader to take on a truly rewarding role at the FBA's Species Recovery Centre. Interested? We'd love to hear from you! Please note that the closing date for applications is Monday 26 January. So on this rather damp January day we invite you to dive into the replenishing pond of FBA freshwater updates: https://mailchi.mp/fba/welcome-to-the-january-2026-issue-of-fba-voice
January 22, 2026 at 6:44 PM
freshwaterbio.bsky.social
This week we mark a momentous milestone in our efforts to save the #FreshwaterPearlMussel from extinction in England.

On 23 July in the River Kent #Cumbria, we released our 5000th juvenile mussel from our #SpeciesRecovery programme.

Read the news article:
www.fba.org.uk/fba-voice/co...
Watch the release of our 5000th juvenile mussel! Preparing for the freshwater pearl mussel releases into the river Preparing for the freshwater pearl mussel releases into the river
July 24, 2025 at 6:30 PM
rtallireland.bsky.social
We have found some interesting things while out exploring this month. We hope you have enjoyed exploring your spaces too this #BiodiversityWeek
#freshwaterpearlmussel #flint #explore #biodiversity
The Owenkillew River in County Tyrone, Northern hosts one of the largest and most vital remaining populations of freshwater pearl mussels (Margaritifera margaritifera) in the region. This critically endangered species relies on a highly specialised habitat with good water quality to survive. They can live up to 100 years old; the adults are quite hardy but their young are very sensitive to environmental pressures - for example sedimentation & nutrient run off. Image of a freshwater pearl mussel as large as an adult male's hand. We found a piece of worked flint along a field margin beside the riverbank in County Donegal, Ireland. Today the location is around 3km inland from the coast, but 6000+ years ago that location would have been the historic shoreline/river mouth due to sea level and landscape change over time. This image shows a piece of flint in scale relative to a coin.
May 21, 2026 at 8:59 AM
westcumbriart.bsky.social
🦪 Last week we released 350 captive-bred freshwater pearl mussels into the River Irt with @freshwaterbio ! Helping one of England’s rarest species recover. Also checked a 2024 release site and found mussels still thriving! 💧
#SpeciesRecovery #FreshwaterPearlMussel
Close up of our happy mussels
July 18, 2025 at 3:17 PM
edeeyto.bsky.social
Today, we had a great site visit from our colleagues in @npwsBioData @opwireland to the @MarineInst Newport hatchery, to share our experience to date of captive breeding #FreshwaterPearlMussel
@agriculture_ie @IRLDeptPER @DeptHousingIRL @ElizabethRyder7 @EvelynMoorkens
November 13, 2024 at 8:45 AM
edeeyto.bsky.social
Great to meet Jurgen Geist & Ralph Kuehn when they came to get DNA samples from the #FreshwaterPearlMussel captive population in @MarineInst. This is a @npwsBioData @DeptHousingIRL funded project investigating genetic diversity in FPMs around 🇮🇪 @EvelynMoorkens @ElizabethRyder7
November 13, 2024 at 8:34 AM
edeeyto.bsky.social
This #FreshwaterPearlMussel is doing a bit of shell decoration - not sure where they got the green from? some algae collection?
November 13, 2024 at 8:20 AM
edeeyto.bsky.social
Getting ready for the 2023 glochidiosis season of our #FreshwaterPearlMussel captive breeding program with @npwsBioData
A cohort of trout have been bred in the @MarineInst hatchery in Furnace, and they will share their tank with some reproducing FPM
🤞🏼🤞🏼🤞🏼🤞🏼🤞🏼
📷 L. Sweeney
November 13, 2024 at 8:07 AM
welshcountry.bsky.social
#northwalesriverstrust #riverstrust #riverstrusts #wetlands #conservation #pearlmussels #freshwaterpearlmussel
News from North Wales River Trust
News from North Wales Rivers Trusts looking at Fish passage in culverts, boosting wetlands and conserving freshwater pearl mussels...
www.welshcountry.co.uk
September 2, 2025 at 9:23 AM
freshwaterbio.bsky.social
For your #FreshwaterPearlMussel pleasure we present a new article: How do Swedish LIFE Projects reintroduce mussels?

Based on a presentation by Dr Sebastian L. Rock of Karlstad University, attended during a knowledge exchange trip to Sweden last year.

Find out more👇
www.fba.org.uk/articles/how...
How do Swedish LIFE Projects reintroduce mussels? — Freshwater Biological Association
During a knowledge exchange trip to Sweden last year, FBA's Pearl Mussel Officer Ben King joined Dr Sebastian L. Rock, for a presentation on how Sweden works with mussel reintroductions. Sebastian is ...
www.fba.org.uk
January 29, 2026 at 6:13 PM
freshwaterbio.bsky.social
Hello #FreshwaterPearlMussel friends! This Microscope Monday 🔬 we have some fascinating photos of glochidia encystment on a brown trout.

An observation from the FBA Ark is that the growth of encysted glochidia is highly correlated to water temperature.
Find out more:
www.fba.org.uk/freshwater-p...
September 29, 2025 at 5:03 PM