Invasion

Invasion Description

1st Introduced Record: Harlem/NY/Harlem River (DeKay 1843, cited by Bequaert 1943, 'clinging to the stems of salt grass')

Type Locality MD or NJ/Atlantic Ocean (Say 1822). Littoraria irrorata has a complex history in the mid-Atlantic region. It ranged north into New England during the warm post-glacial period, and then became extinct and present as subfossil shells as the climate cooled (Knight 1933; Bequaert 1943). Its present northern limit is on the Atlantic coast of New Jersey. In the 19th century, it was apparently re-introduced at several locations from Staten Island, New York to Vineyard Sound, Massachusetts , but has not become established (Bequaert 1943); Jacobson 1965; Goldberg 1977)

Geographic Extent

Introduced & Extinct: MA/Vineyard Sound (Verrill and Smith 1873, 'sparingly', 'Many shells of this species have undoubtedly been brought from Virginia and Maryland with the southern oysters planted in our waters'); Harlem/NY/Harlem River (DeKay 1843, cited by Bequaert 1943), 'clinging to the stems of salt frass'); Stratford/CT/Long Island Sound (Linsley 1845, cited by Bequaert 1943, 'on high sedge'); New Haven/CT/New Haven Harbor (Perkins 1869, 'not at all common') Huntington/NY/Long Island Sound (Smith and Prime 1870, 'a few dead shells in the grass above high water mark'); Orient, Long Island/NY/Long Island Sound (1933, Bequaert 1943, 'a few living shells'); NY/Staten Island (1886, Simith 1886, cited by Bequaert 1943); Rockaway, New York City/NY/Atlantic Ocean (Smith and Prime 1870; 65th street, Brooklyn/NY/Jamaica Bay (6/17/1964, Jacobson 1965, 'one live specimen and one dead specimen); Manasquan Inlet Railroad Beach (1964, Jacobson 1965, 'a sizable colony')