Fresh Water Mussels

[Billhook]

My wife and I and another friend were clearing fallen branches and other debris from our chalk stream.

My wife was feeling around for rotten branches in some mud at a point where the water exits the lake and enters the main stream.  It is relatively calm water at that point, but still on the move.

She suddenly discovered all these mussels, and having done a quick internet search which revealed how rare they are, we quickly put them back after the photo.  Hopefully they will be ok.

It says on the net that they can live up to 130 years

we have had all sorts of folk over the years doing surveys of wildlife but mussels have never been mentioned.

Crayfish, Brown Trout, Grayling, Bullheads, Lamprey and much more but never mussels

Apparently a good sign that the stream is healthy and unpolluted

Anybody know any more?

[David Lawrence 88]

Could they be the invasive

Quagga or zebra ones ?

 

they don’t look like the native ones which are in our local Northumberland river

 

 

 

[Mesterh]

130 years! Well I never. 

Nice find. 👍 

[Billhook]

7 hours ago, David Lawrence 88 said:

Could they be the invasive

Quagga or zebra ones ?

 

they don’t look like the native ones which are in our local Northumberland river

 

 

 

Trawling the web (as well as the stream) it looks as though you are correct about the Zebra Mussels which are apparently unwelcome and invasive, but still must be a good indicator of stream health water quality

Mussel invasion blocks water supply in Lincolnshire

WWW.BBC.CO.UK

---

A local water company is spending £1m to deal with shellfish that block its water processing plant.

 

[Billhook]

Further research shows that Zebra Mussels are a pest all around the World but the photos I have seen seem to be of intense clusters which need to adhere to something solid and they say that Zebras do not do well in soft sand or silt.  They are also smaller than the ones my wife found which were individuals in soft silt and not all stuck together

 

Zebra mussel - Wikipedia

EN.WIKIPEDIA.ORG

 

[doobin]

The look like young swan mussels. 

[dumper]

They are young native swan mussels look for the parents they can be  the size of your hand

[Billhook]

7 minutes ago, dumper said:

They are young native swan mussels look for the parents they can be  the size of your hand

I think you are both spot on.  Are they rare, are they native?  Can we be sure they are not duck mussels

Swan Mussel | NatureSpot

WWW.NATURESPOT.ORG.UK

 

[Ty Korrigan]

We have mussels in Brittany that grow to around 25cm-30cm.

A contractor dredged a lake at a chateau and I went mudlarking. Found some decent bottles, a clip from a Mauser and dozens of giant mussels.

  Stuart

[dumper]

 

1 hour ago, Billhook said:

I think you are both spot on.  Are they rare, are they native?  Can we be sure they are not duck mussels

Swan Mussel | NatureSpot

WWW.NATURESPOT.ORG.UK

 

 

Duck mussels are found in a more domestic situation usually of an evening when returning from a large intake of alcohol but can be found during the day best avoided 

Edited May 2, 2021 by dumper