About Cyclonaias tuberculata (Rafinesque, 1820)
Cyclonaias tuberculata, commonly known as the purple wartyback, is a species of freshwater mussel, an aquatic bivalve mollusk. It is native to eastern North America, with a wide distribution primarily within the Mississippi River drainage. It remains common across many parts of its range, especially in the southern portion, but it faces negative impacts from water pollution and channelization. In the Mississippi River drainage, this species is threatened by overgrowth of the invasive zebra mussel, Dreissena polymorpha. In Canada, it is additionally threatened by predation on juvenile mussels, and potentially by unsuccessful development of its larval glochidia when they attach to the invasive round goby, Neogobius melanostomus. This species was previously classified as the only species in the genus Cyclonaias, but genetic evidence led to its reclassification into the genus Rotundaria in 2012.
