Potential impacts of invasive mussels on long-term carbonate chemistry changes in Lake Michigan

Chunqi SHEN; Jeremy M. TESTA; Yang SONG

doi:10.1007/s00343-025-4321-z

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Potential impacts of invasive mussels on long-term carbonate chemistry changes in Lake Michigan

Chemistry | Updated：2026-03-26

- Potential impacts of invasive mussels on long-term carbonate chemistry changes in Lake Michigan
- Journal of Oceanology and Limnology Vol. 44, Issue 1, Pages: 125-136(2026)
- Affiliations：
  
  1.College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Suzhou University of Science and Technology, Suzhou 215009, China
  2.Chesapeake Biological Laboratory, University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science, Solomons 20688, MD, USA
  3.Cooperative Institute for Great Lakes Research, School for Environment and Sustainability, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor 48109, MI, USA
  4.Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee 53211, WI, USA
  5.Key Laboratory of Integrated Regulation and Resources Development of Shallow Lakes of Ministry of Education, Hohai University, Nanjing 210098, China
- Author bio：
  
  cshen@usts.edu.cn
- Funds：
- DOI：10.1007/s00343-025-4321-z
  CLC：
- Received：03 December 2024，
  
  Accepted：14 March 2025，
  
  Online First：21 April 2025，
  
  Published：01 January 2026
- Accepted：
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SHEN Chunqi,TESTA Jeremy M.,SONG Yang.Potential impacts of invasive mussels on long-term carbonate chemistry changes in Lake Michigan[J].Journal of Oceanology and Limnology,2026,44(01):125-136.
DOI：

SHEN Chunqi,TESTA Jeremy M.,SONG Yang.Potential impacts of invasive mussels on long-term carbonate chemistry changes in Lake Michigan[J].Journal of Oceanology and Limnology,2026,44(01):125-136. DOI： 10.1007/s00343-025-4321-z.

摘要

Abstract

While oceanic and coastal acidification has gained increased attention

long-term pH trends and their drivers in large freshwater systems remain poorly understood. The Laurentian Great Lakes are the world’s largest freshwater system

and in many ways resemble marine ecosystems. However

unlike the open ocean and coastal waters where pH has declined due to rising atmospheric CO

no significant pH trends have been observed in the Laurentian Great Lakes

despite significant ecosystem changes driven partly by the invasion of dreissenid mussels. This study examined 41 years of field observations from Lake Michigan to investigate the long-term carbonate chemistry dynamics. Observational results revealed substantial declines in both total alkalinity (TA) and dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) over the four decades. Mussel shell calcification emerged as the primary mechanism behind these declines

accounting for 97% and 47% of the observed changes in TA and DIC

respectively

lowering water column pH by 0.24 units. Elevated carbon accumulation in soft mussel tissues

coupled with long-term changes in the air-water

gradient during summer

significantly contributed to long-term DIC variations

explaining 18% and 28% of the lake-wide DIC loss. These two mechanisms also resulted in an overall pH increase of 0.09 and 0.12 units

large

ly offsetting the calcification-driven pH decrease. These findings bridge a gap in acidification research for large freshwater systems and provide valuable insights for comprehensive lake-wide management strategies.

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Keywords

references

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