New studies have shown that Maarmorilik fjord is inhabited by two species of the blue mussel, Mytilus edulis and M. trossulus. The fjord is impacted by contamination from the former lead/zinc mine and input of glacier freshwater. Previously it was assumed that the Greenland populations only consisted of M. edulis and thus all our previous monitoring and research have not taken into consideration that results reflected samples with mixed species. Pilot studies as well as international literature suggest differences in preference to climate factors as well as response to contamination between the two species. In Greenland, our study showed that M. edulis dominates in south and M. trossulus in north.

We aim to study the species sensitivities: I) what climate factors determine the distribution and occurrence of Mytilus spp?; II) how does heavy metal contamination determine the occurrence of Mytilus spp?; III) what implication does it have if an environmental sample consist of one or the other species or a mixture?

Field Site: Maarmorilik

PI: Lis Bach

link to Isaaffik website