Habitat of Zebra Clams

The extremely small zebra mussel (or zebra clam) is no more than 2 inches long. The clams get their name from the alternating light and dark stripes on the shell. Zebra clams are not native to the U.S. They come from the Balkan region of Europe, in the Caspian Sea and Black Sea. The zebra clam made its way to North America as stowaways on ships trading with American companies in the 1980s. Today they have a habitat throughout the waters of North America.

  1. Geography

    • The National Oceanic &Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) describes the zebra mussel's habitat as freshwater regions of the Midwestern U.S. According to the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) in Wisconsin, the zebra clams were first found in Lake Michigan near the Wisconsin shores in 1990. Today, the clams populate Lake Michigan and have made their way down the Mississippi and St. Croix Rivers.

    Temperature

    • According to the University of Wisconsin Sea Grant Institute, zebra clams require water that is 32 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit. The clams bury themselves deep in the Great Lakes and Midwestern rivers during the winter months. However, the zebra clams cannot stand extremely high temperatures. The NOAA recommends running water that is 104 degrees Fahrenheit over the clams to release them from the sides of boats and marine deck parts.

    Nutrients

    • Zebra clams are feeder mussels that feed by filtering water. Their nutrition comes from the plankton. They also require a habitat high in calcium to keep the shells strengthened. Water with too much salinity (salt) is inhabitable to the zebra clam.

    Other Water Characteristics

    • The filtering act that feeds zebra mussels also clarifies the waters that the clams live in. This is a problem for the freshwater bodies in the U.S. that are home to many specifies of fish known to inhabit darker waters. These light sensitive species like the walleye cannot live in the clarified water created by the zebra clam. This is one reason why a zebra clam infestation is a threat to the North American freshwater habitat.