Ohio bridge project designed to protect endangered mussel

TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) — Ohio has designed an $11.8 million construction project to protect a federally endangered mussel species — a creature that’s barely the size of a human fingernail.

Department of Transportation officials say they accommodated the rayed bean in their plans for re-decking and widening the Interstate 475/U.S Route 23 bridge over the Ohio Turnpike and Swan Creek in northwest Ohio, The Blade newspaper reported.

The freshwater mussel in Swan Creek is only about 1.5 inches.

Department spokeswoman Theresa Pollick said the agency has worked around other federally endangered species in the past, such as the Indiana bat, and has worked with wildlife biologists for years to be careful around species in need of special care, such as the bald eagle and walleye.

The bridge project is Ohio’s only current transportation project in which the department is working around a federally endangered species. The state has its own list of state-endangered species.