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| NAS - Nonindigenous Aquatic Species |
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Common Name: a tubificid worm
Synonyms and Other Names: Euilyodrilus vejdovskyi
Taxonomy: available through 
Identification: This aquatic oligochaete exhibits dorsal bundles of 2–6 bifid setae. At the end of these setae there is a thinner but not longer upper tooth in comparison to the lower one. P. vejdovskyi displays ventral bundles containing 5–10 bifid setae similar to those in the dorsal bundles. Bundles of spermathecal setae found on segment 10 contain only one modified large distal seta that is trough-shaped at the tip. There are as many as 5 typical ventral setae in each bundle on segment 11 (Finogenova and Poddubnaja 1990; Balik et al. 2004).
Size: 10–21 mm long (Finogenova and Poddubnaja1990).
Native Range: P. vejdovskyi is native to parts of the Ponto-Caspian region within the Black Sea, Caspian Sea, and Sea of Azov drainages (Finogenova and Poddubnaja 1990; Balik et al. 2004).
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Interactive maps: Continental US, Alaska, Hawaii, Caribbean
Nonindigenous Occurrences: Potamothrix spp. were probably introduced before 1959 and simply remained undetected in the Great Lakes basin. P. vejdovskyi has been recorded from all the Great Lakes as well as the Sandusky River, St. Mary’s River, the St. Clair River, the Detroit River, the Niagara River, and other inland waters within the Great Lakes basin (Brinkhurst 1967; Hiltunen 1967, 1969; Johnson and Brinkhurst 1971; Shrivastava 1974; Stimpson et al. 1975; Prater et al. 1980; Barton 1986; Graney et al. 1986; Nalepa et al. 2002; Grigorovich et al. 2003a, b; Spencer and Hudson 2003).
Ecology: P. vejdovskyi occurs in mesotrophic to eutrophic conditions and may be favored by the presence of some pollution. It occurs at depths of 5.5–150 m but is less abundant at depths greater than 40 m. P. vejdovskyi has been recorded on organic matter, silt, silt and clay, and other fine sediments. In Turkish waters it can occur in pH of around 7.5–8 and salinities of around 0.6–1.8‰. It is primarily a freshwater species although it can tolerate slightly brackish water (Brinkhurst 1967; Hiltunen 1967; Lang and Lang-Dobler 1979; Barton 1986; Lang 1989; Lang and Reymond 1992, 1995; Milbrink 1999; Lang 2001; Balik et al. 2004; Strayer et al. 2006).
Tubificids typically feed by ingesting sediments and excreting particles onto the sediment surface. P. vejdovskyi is capable of pumping 9.5–15 ml of water per worm per hour into the sediments as it respires (Cunningham et al. 1999).
Means of Introduction: Unclear. However, P. vejdovskyi was most likely introduced in ballast water in ships. Populations introduced to the Great Lakes probably arrived from the Baltic Sea, a region to which this species had previously been introduced (Bij de Vaate et al. 2002; Grigorovich et al. 2003)
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 (Milbrink and Timm 2001). On the other hand, it is possible but not confirmed that P. vejdovskyi competes with Tubifex tubifex (Lang and Lang-Dobler 1979).
Remarks: P. vejdovskyi is synonymous with Euilyodrilus vejdovskyi.
P. vejdovskyi could easily invade the Finnish Lake District because of connections to the Baltic Sea through the Saimaa Canal and the large number of ships that enter this region (Pienimaki et al. 2004).
References
Balik, S., M. R. Ustaoglu, and S. Yildiz. 2004. Oligochaeta and Aphanoneura (Annelida) fauna of the Gediz Delta (Menemen-izmir). Turkish Journal of Zoology 28:183-197.
Barton, D. R. 1986. Nearshore benthic invertebrates of the Ontario waters of Lake Ontario. Journal of Great Lakes Research 12(4):270-280.
Bij de Vaate, A., K. Jazdzewski, H. A. M. Ketelaars, S. Gollasch, and G. Van der Velde. 2002. Geographical patterns in range extension of Ponto-Caspian macroinvertebrate species in Europe. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 59:1159-1174.
Brinkhurst, R. O. 1967. The distribution of aquatic Oligochaeta in Saginaw Bay, Lake Huron. Limnology and Oceanography 12:137-143.
Cunningham, P. B., D. D. Reible, J. F. Fleeger, K. T. Valsaraj and L. J. Thibodeaux. 1999. Assessment of the effects of bioturbation in contaminated sediments. Proceedings of the 1999 Conference on Hazardous Waste Research. Pp. 276 – 285.
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.
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. Can. J. Fish. Aq. Sci. 60: 740-756.
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. 1989. Effects of small-scale sediment patchiness on the distribution of tubificid and lumbriculid worms in Lake Geneva, Switzerland. Freshwater Biology 21(3):477-482.
Lang, C. 2001. Anomalous response of zoobenthos (oligochaetes and chironomids) to the decrease of phosphorus in Lake Neuchatel. Revue Suisse de Zoologie 108(4):891-903.
Lang, C. and B. Lang-Dobler. 1979. The chemical environment of tubificid and lumbriculid worms according to the pollution level of the sediment. Hydrobiologia 65(3):273-282.
Lang, C. and O. Reymond. 1992. Reversal of eutrophication in Lake Geneva: evidence from the oligochaete communities. Freshwater Biology 28(2):145-148.
Lang, C. and O. Reymond. 1995. Contrasting responses of oligochaete communities to the abatement of eutrophication in Lake Geneva. Hydrobiologia 308: 77-82.
Milbrink, G. 1999. Distribution and dispersal capacity of the Ponto-Caspian tubificid oligochaete Potamothrix heuscheri (Bretscher, 1990) in Scandinavia. Hydrobiologia 406:133-142.
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.
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.
Pienimaki, M. and E. Leppakoski. 2004. Invasion pressure on the Finnish Lake District: invasion corridors and barriers. Biological Invasions 6(3):331-346.
Prater, B. L., K. R. Smith, M. S. Loden, and W. B. Jackson. 1980. The aquatic Oligochaeta of the Sandusky River, Ohio, USA. Ohio Journal of Science 80(2):65-70.
Shrivastava, H. N. 1974. Macrobenthos of Lake Huron. Journal of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada Technical Report 449.
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., 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.
Author: Rebekah M. Kipp
Contributing Agencies: 
NOAA - GLERL
Revision Date: 4/9/2007 Citation for this information:
Rebekah M. Kipp. 2009. Potamothrix vejdovskyi. USGS Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database, Gainesville, FL.
<http://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/FactSheet.asp?speciesID=2708> Revision Date: 4/9/2007
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