The Asian clam Corbicula fluminea is one of the most invasive species in freshwater aquatic ecosystems. The rapid growth, earlier sexual maturity, short life span, high fecundity and its association with human activities makes C. fluminea a non-indigenous invasive species likely to colonize new environments. This species, originally distributed in Asiatic ecosystems, is now a common inhabitant of American and European freshwater habitats. The present paper reviews the information related to the life cycle, ecology and potential ecological and economic impacts caused by C. fluminea in the invaded habitats. Furthermore, this paper also proposed future works that may be implemented in order to increase our general knowledge about the ecology of this bivalve.

Ten species of molluscs were identified in the freshwater tidal area of the River Minho estuary. Species richness per site ranged from 1 to 9. Abundance ranged from 230 to 4130 individuals per m², with an average of 1412 individuals per m2. Corbicula fluminea(Müller, 1774) presented the highest density, corresponding to 88.7 % of the total specimens gathered, followed by Pisidium amnicum (Müller, 1774) with 5.8 %. Biomass ranged from 17.0 to 249.6 g AFDW m-2, with an average of 99.8 g AFDW m-2. C. fluminea was the species dominating the total biomass (95.4 %), followed by Bithynia tentaculata (Linnaeus, 1758) with 1.6 %. A multivariate analysis revealed a community with two distinct groups : one group almost or exclusively represented by C. fluminea, and another group with a more diverse assemblage.

The non‐indigenous species Corbicula fluminea (Müller, 1774) is one of the most invasive bivalves in freshwater ecosystems. This Asian clam was first reported in the River Minho estuary in 1989. After a short period of time, it became the major component of the local benthic fauna in terms of abundance and biomass. In the autumn of 2004 and 2005, spatial and temporal variations in abundance, biomass and population structure of C. fluminea were investigated at 16 sites in the freshwater subtidal area of the River Minho estuary. Mean abundance and biomass per site ranged from 80 to 4185ind.m⁻² and 8.5 to 465.9g AFDWm⁻², respectively. The environmental characterization of the area was performed through multivariate analysis, which revealed three distinct areas subjected to different abiotic conditions. C. fluminea population structure is well correlated with these three distinct areas. The combination of several abiotic variables determining C. fluminea biomass distribution was evaluated through a stepwise multiple regression. This model showed that redox potential, nutrient concentrations, hardness, organic matter and sediment characteristics explained almost 60% of the variation in C. fluminea biomass in the freshwater subtidal area of the River Minho estuary (R²=59.3%, F_[9,86]=13.9, p<0.001). Improved ecological knowledge is essential for future C. fluminea management, in order to protect local habitats and biodiversity, and to reduce the economic impact of this non‐indigenous invasive species. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.