Mussels and Shirt Buttons
Morning sketch: a freshwater mussel shell that was drilled to make shirt buttons, and a few buttons made from mussel shells.
For several decades in the late 1800s and early 1900s we hauled out thousands of tons of freshwater mussels (Unionidae species, mostly) from our rivers, especially in the Midwest. Today drilled shells can still be found along the banks of many of our rivers.
Buttons like these can easily be found in rural flea markets where jars of buttons from old farmsteads are for sale. When a shirt wore out on a farm, the cloth was repurposed and the buttons were saved for making new clothes.
We thought the mussels were a limitless resource because they were so abundant. Roughly 300 species of freshwater mussels are native to the waters of the United States.
We didn’t realize that those mussels grow slowly, or that their life cycles could be so easily disrupted by our industrial practices.
We also didn’t know that a single mussel could filter 25 gallons (100 liters) of water each day.
Some species quickly went extinct or were extirpated. Most others have been put at various stages of risk of extinction or population collapse.
But remnant populations are still to be found throughout the U.S., and I am hopeful that many of them can be restored if we are intentional and careful.
One of my hopes is to see their populations increase in my river here in eastern South Dakota.
