Mussels
Blue mussel Mytilus edulis
Shaped like a rounded triangle, the blue mussel is a hinged, filter-feeding bivalve found in Barnegat bay and the Atlantic ocean
The blue mussel has a slender, brownish foot that allows it to move and temporarily hold onto any substrate.
A strong, thread-like anchor, called a byssal thread, allows the blue mussel to attach itself securely to almost any substrate. The byssal threads are secreted as a liquid by a gland near the blue mussel’s foot, and the threads harden upon contact with water.
Blue mussels often form aggregations, where they attach to each other using byssus threads.
When densities are low, short-lived mussel populations, clumped distribution patterns are seen.
Mussel beds generally form from fields that persist long enough to establish a dense population.
Blue mussels live in intertidal areas and inlets of Barnegat Bay attached to rocks and other hard substrates by strong (and somewhat elastic) thread-like structures called byssal threads. These are secreted by byssal glands located in the foot of the mussel.
Mussels Family Mytilidae
Blue
