Estimating hydrodynamic changes in rivers by monitoring freshwater mussels’ response

Climate change alters the hydrological regime and, consequently, the magnitude of flows and hydrodynamics in rivers. This also affecys the functions of biological communities which are extremely controlled by the hydraulic processes. Literature (e.g. Jones et al., 1994; Butler et al., 2012) indicates that some species can be considered as “ecosystem engineers”, exerting an important role in the aquatic environment. The present study concerns freshwater mussels (FMs), which meet the criteria to be considered as typical “ecosystem engineers”. The specific aim of the work is to verify if freshwater mussels’ behavioural response can be considered a useful tool for an early warning system (BEWS) for flow variations in rivers, also during floods.