DOI: 10.5061/dryad.tdz08kq0c
title: Biometric conversion factors as a unifying platform for comparative assessment of invasive freshwater bivalves

description: 1. Invasive bivalves continue to spread and negatively impact freshwater
 ecosystems worldwide. As different metrics for body size and biomass are
 frequently used within the literature to standardise bivalve related
 ecological impacts (e.g. respiration and filtration rates), the lack of
 broadly applicable conversion equations currently hinders reliable
 comparison across bivalve populations. To facilitate improved comparative
 assessment amongst studies originating from disparate geographic
 locations, we report body size and biomass conversion equations for six
 invasive freshwater bivalves (or species complex members) worldwide:
 Corbicula fluminea, C. largillierti, Dreissena bugensis, D. polymorpha,
 Limnoperna fortunei and Sinanodonta woodiana, and tested the reliability
 (i.e. precision and accuracy) of these equations. 2. Body size (length,
 width, height) and biomass metrics of living-weight (LW), wet-weight (WW),
 dry-weight (DW), dry shell-weight (SW), shell free dry-weight (SFDW) and
 ash-free dry-weight (AFDW) were collected from a total of 44 bivalve
 populations located in Asia, the Americas and Europe. Relationships
 between body size and individual biomass metrics, as well as proportional
 weight-to-weight conversion factors, were determined. 3. For most species,
 although inherent variation existed between sampled populations, body size
 directional measurements were found to be good predictors of all biomass
 metrics (e.g. length to LW, WW, SW or DW: R2 = 0.82–0.96), with moderate
 to high accuracy for mean absolute error (MAE): ±9.14–24.19%. Similarly,
 narrow 95%–confidence limits and low MAE were observed for most
 proportional biomass relationships, indicating high reliability for the
 calculated conversion factors (e.g. LW to AFDW; CI range: 0.7–2.0, MAE:
 ±0.7–2.0%). 4. Synthesis and applications. Our derived biomass prediction
 equations can be used to rapidly estimate the biologically active biomass
 of the assessed species, based on simpler biomass or body size
 measurements for a wide range of situations globally. This allows for the
 calculation of approximate average indicators that, when combined with
 density data, can be used to estimate biomass per geographic unit-area and
 contribute to quantification of population-level effects. These general
 equations will support meta-analyses, and allow for comparative assessment
 of historic and contemporary data. Overall, these equations will enable
 conservation managers to better understand and predict ecological impacts
 of these bivalves.02-Jun-2021 --
description: See:  Coughlan, N. E., Cunningham, E. M.,
 Cuthbert, R. N., Joyce, P. W. S., Anastacio, P., Banha, F., Bonel,
 N., <br> Bradbeer, S. J., Briski, E., Butitta, V. L., Čadková, Z.,
 Dick, J. T. A., Douda, K., Eagling, L. E.,  Ferreira-Rodríguez,
 N., <br> Hünicken, L. A., Johansson, M. L., Kregting, L., Labecka,
 A. M., Li, D., Liquin, F., Marescaux, J., Morris, T. J., Nowakowska,
 P., <br> Ożgo, M., Paolucci, E. M., Peribáñez, M. A., Riccardi, N.,
 Smith, E. R. C., Spear, M. J., Steffen, G. T., Tiemann, J. S., <br>
 Urbańska, M., Van Doninck, K., Vastrade, M., Vong, G. Y. W.,
 Wawrzyniak-Wydrowska, B., Xia, Z., Zeng, C., Zhan, A., Sylvester, F.
 (2021). <br> Biometric conversion factors as a unifying platform for
 comparative assessment of invasive freshwater bivalves. Journal of Applied
 Ecology <br> https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.13941
description: See: Coughlan et al_Bivalve Biometric
 DATASET_Readme _.txt