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| NAS - Nonindigenous Aquatic Species |
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Common Name: a tubificid worm
Synonyms and Other Names: Euilyodrilus moldaviensis
Taxonomy: available through 
Identification: This oligochaete has bundles of 6–9 bifid crochets with longer and thinner upper teeth in comparison to the lower ones on anterior segments. There are modified thick spermathecal chaetae with long teeth on segment 10 and there is one very long bifid ventral seta per bundle on segment 11. There are no prostate glands, no chitinous penis sheaths, and no capilliform chaetae (Brinkhurst 1965; Spencer 1978; Finogenova and Poddubnaja 1990; Yildiz et al. 2005).
Size: ranges in length from 10–30 mm (Finogenova and Poddubnaja 1990; Yildiz et al. 2005).
Native Range: P. moldaviensis is from the Ponto-Caspian region in the Black Sea, Caspian Sea, and Sea of Azov (Brinkhurst 1965; Milbrink and Timm 2001).
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Interactive maps: Continental US, Alaska, Hawaii, Caribbean
Nonindigenous Occurrences: Potamothrix spp. were probably introduced to the Great Lakes basin before 1959 and remained undetected. P. moldaviensis has been recorded from Lake Erie, Lake Michigan, Lake Ontario, Lake Superior, Lake Huron, Lake St. Clair, the St. Clair River, St. Mary’s River, the Detroit River, the Niagara River, Cayuga Lake, and other water bodies within the Great Lakes basin (Brinkhurst 1965, 1967; Hiltunen 1969; Johnson and Brinkhurst 1971; Mozley and Garcia 1972; Stimpson et al. 1975; Spencer 1978, 1980; Graney et al. 1986; Barton 1988; Griffiths 1991; Weider 1992; Boyd et al. 2001; Lozano et al. 2001; Nalepa et al. 2002; Grigorovich et al. 2003a, b; Spencer and Hudson 2003).
Ecology: P. moldaviensis is a freshwater oligochaete that can tolerate brief increases in salinity only. It is generally rheophilic, preferring rivers or lakes with bottom currents. It has been recorded at depths of 3–115 m, although it is generally less common below 35 m. It occurs in mesotrophic to eutrophic conditions in gravelly sand, sand, muddy sand, amongst macrophytes, and crushed shells. It is generally absent from substrate with high silt and clay content (Brinkhurst 1967; Hiltunen 1967; Timm 1970; Moroz 1974, 1994; Stimpson et al. 1975; Spencer 1978; Probst 1987; Barton 1988; Lang and Reymond 1993; Sauter and Gude 1996; Milbrink and Timm 2001; Strayer et al. 2003, 2006).
P. moldaviensis can reproduce by making pear-shaped cocoons covered in sediment particles that adhere to hard substrates. One study found that at 10ºC P. moldaviensis spends around 46 days in cocoons, 300 days as an immature individual after it hatches, and 150 days in the mature stage. At 15ºC the length of time spent in the cocoon decreases to 30 days (Arkhipova 1983; Bonacina et al. 1987; Milbrink and Timm 2001).
Means of Introduction: Unknown
Status: Established where recorded.
Impact of Introduction:
A) Realized: Unknown.
B) Potential: Some studies suggest that Potamothrix spp. may have a positive impact on native oligochaetes in Europe. The benefit could result from the numerous bacteria found in Potamothrix spp. faeces, which could allow for improved feeding by natives. In Lake Malaren, Sweden, P. moldavienis and other Ponto-Caspian Potamothrix spp. are associated with increased oligochaete diversity (Milbrink 1993; Milbrink and Timm 2001).
Remarks: P. moldaviensis has dispersed throughout much of eastern and central Europe with the aid of the shipping industry and canals (Milbrink and Timm 2001).
P. moldaviensis is synonymous with Euilyodrilus moldaviensis.
References
Arkhipova, N. R. 1983. The structure of cocoons in Limnodrilus hoffmeisteri and Potamothrix moldaviensis (Tubificidae, Oligochaeta). Zoologicheskii Zhurnal 62(11):1734-1736.
Barton, D. R. 1988. Distribution of some common benthic invertebrates in nearshore Lake Erie, with emphasis on depth and type of substratum. Journal of Great Lakes Research 14(1):34-43.
Bonacina, C., G. Bonomi, and C. Monti. 1987. Progress in cohort cultures of aquatic Oligochaeta. Hydrobiologia 155:163-169.
Boyd, D., A. Todd, and R. Jaagumagi. 2001. The influence of urban runoff on sediment quality and benthos in Toronto Harbour. Environmental Monitoring and Reporting Branch, Ontario Ministry of the Environment. 24 pp.
Brinkhurst, R. O. 1965. Studies on the North American aquatic Oligochaeta. II: Tubificidae. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 117(4):117-172.
Brinkhurst, R. O. 1967. The distribution of aquatic Oligochaeta in Saginaw Bay, Lake Huron. Limnology and Oceanography 12:137-143.
Finogenova, N. P. and T. L. Poddubnaja. 1990. One more revision of the genus Potamothrix Vejdovsky et Mrazek 1902 (Oligochaeta, Tubificidae). Zoologische Jahrbuecher Abteilung fuer Systematik Oekologie und Geographie der Tiere 117(1):55-83.
Graney, R. L., T. J. Keilty, and J. P. Giesy. 1986. Free amino-acid pools of five species of freshwater oligochaetes. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 43(3):600-607.
Griffiths, R. W. 1991. Environmental quality assessment of the St. Clair River as reflected by the distribution of benthic macroinvertebrates in 1985. Hydrobiologia 219:143-164.
Grigorovich, I. A., A. V. Korniushin, D. K. Gray, I. C. Duggan, R. I. Colautti, and H. J. MacIsaac. 2003a. Lake Superior: an invasion coldspot? Hydrobiologia 499:191-210.
Grigorovich, I. A., R. I. Colautti, E. L. Mills, K. Holeck, A. G. Ballert, and H. J. MacIsaac. 2003b. Ballast-mediated animal introductions in the Laurentian Great Lakes: retrospective and prospective analyses.
Hiltunen, J. K. 1967. Some oligochaetes from Lake Michigan. Transactions of the American Microscopical Society 86(4):433-454.
Hiltunen, J. K. 1969. Distribution of oligochaetes in western Lake Erie, 1961. Limnology and Oceanography 14(2):260-264.
Johnson, M. G. and R. O. Brinkhurst. 1971. Associations and species diversity in benthic macroinvertebrates of Bay of Quinte and Lake Ontario. Journal of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada 28:1683-1697.
Lang, C. and O. Reymond. 1993. Eutrophication of Lake Morat indicated by the oligochaete communities: 1980-1991 trend. Revue Suisse de Zoologie 100(1):11-18.
Lozano, S. J., J. V. Scharold, and T. F. Nalepa. 2001. Recent declines in benthic macroinvertebrate densities in Lake Ontario. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 58:518-529.
Milbrink, G. 1993. Evidence for mutualistic interactions in freshwater oligochaete communities. Oikos 68(2):317-322.
Milbrink, G. and T. Timm. 2001. Distribution and dispersal capacity of the Ponto-Caspian tubificid oligochaete Potamothrix moldaviensis Vejdovsky et Mrazek, 1903 in the Baltic Sea region. Hydrobiologia 463:93-102.
Moroz, T. G. 1974. Effect of salinity on the survival and reproduction of oligochaetes of the family Tubificidae from the Dnieper Bug Estuary, USSR. Hydrobiological Journal 10(5):81-83.
Moroz, T. G. 1994. Aquatic Oligochaeta of the Dnieper-Bug Estuary system. Hydrobiologia 278:133-138.
Mozley, S. C. and L. C. Garcia. 1972. Benthic macrofauna in the coastal zone of southeastern Lake Michigan. Proceedings of the 15th Conference of Great Lakes Research 1972:102-116.
Nalepa, T. F., D. L. Fanslow, M. B. Lansing, G. A. Lang, M. Ford, G. Gostenik, and D. J. Hartson. 2002. Abundance, biomass, and species composition of benthic macroinvertebrate populations in Saginaw Bay, Lake Huron, 1987-96, NOAA Technical Memorandum GLERL-122, Ann Arbor, Michigan. 32 pp.
Probst, L. 1987. Sublittoral and profundal Oligochaeta fauna of the Lake Constance (Bodensee-Obersee). Hydrobiologia 155:277-282.
Sauter, G. and H. Gude. 1996. Influence of grain size on the distribution of tubificid oligochaete species. Hydrobiologia 334:97-101.
Spencer, D. R. 1978. The Oligochaeta of Cayuga Lake, New York with a redescription of Potamothrix bavaricus and P. bedoti. Transactions of the America Microscopical Society 97(2):139-147.
Spencer, D. R. 1980. The aquatic Oligochaeta of the St. Lawrence Great Lakes region. Pp. 115-164 In R. O. Brinkhurst and D. G. Cook, eds. Aquatic Oligochaete Biology. Proceedings of the First International Symposium on Aquatic Oligochaete Biology. Plenum Press, New York.
Spencer, D. R. and P. L. Hudson. 2003. The Oligochaeta (Annelida, Clitellata) of the St. Lawrence Great Lakes region: an update. Journal of Great Lakes Research 29(1):89-104.
Stimpson, K. S., J. R. Brice, M. T. Barbour, and P. Howe. 1975. Distribution and abundance of inshore oligochaetes in Lake Michigan. Transactions of the American Microscopical Society 94(3):384-394.
Strayer, D. L., C. Lutz, H. M. Malcom, K. Munger, and W. H. Shaw. 2003. Invertebrate communities associated with a native (Vallisneria americana) and an alien (Trapa natans) macrophyte in a large river. Freshwater Biology 48:1938-1949.
Strayer, D. L., H. M. Malcom, R. E. Bell, S. M. Carbotte, and F. O. Nitsche. 2006. Using geophysical information to define benthic habitats in a large river. Freshwater Biology 51:25-38.
Timm, T. 1970. On the fauna of the Estonian Oligochaeta. Pedobiologia 10:52-78.
Weider, L. J. 1992. Allozymic variation in tubificid oligochaetes from the Laurentian Great Lakes. Hydrobiologia 234:79-85.
Yildiz, S., A. Tasdemir, M. Ozbek, S. Balik, and M. R. Ustaoglu. 2005. Macrobenthic invertebrate fauna of Lake Egrigol (Gundogmus – Antalya). Turkish Journal of Zoology 29:275-282.
Author: Rebekah M. Kipp
Contributing Agencies: 
NOAA - GLERL
Revision Date: 4/9/2007 Citation for this information:
Rebekah M. Kipp. 2009. Potamothrix moldaviensis. USGS Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database, Gainesville, FL.
<http://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/FactSheet.asp?speciesID=2705> Revision Date: 4/9/2007
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