The morphology of conglutinates and conglutinate-like structures in North American freshwater mussels: A scanning-electron microscopy survey.
Our observation of a conglutinate released in Aug., when most females synchronously expelled their broods, could explain the lack of a documented host targeted strategy for O.
The water ruptured the tubes and flushed out conglutinates, which we stored in 70% ethanol.
For handling ease, we divided each gill into three equal sections based on the number of folds in the gill and then enumerated conglutinates for each section.
For each infestation, we opened gravid females, inserted a hypodermic needle into the water tubes of the marsupial gills and injected dechlorinated water to flush-out conglutinates. We teased conglutinates apart with dissecting probes to free glochidia.
On 27 May 2005 we inspected the magazine of thirteen gravid pistolgrip with full displays and observed conglutinates with mature glochidia (i.e., glochidia valves were fully formed and a high proportion of individuals closed upon exposure to sodium chloride) within the magazine cavity.
Gravid pistolgrip held conglutinates and glochidia in their marsupia or within the magazine.
The modified conglutinate (mimic fish) portion of the Lampsilis subangulata superconglutinate ranged from 30 to 50 mm long, the mucus strand that attached the modified conglutinate to the female mussel ranged from 0.3 to 2.3 m long.