Species group · Bivalves
Mussels
WAnimals has 3 species of mussel, spread across 2 families (Dreissenidae, Mytilidae).
- 3 species
- 2 families
- 70 countries
- 52 parks
- Length
- 5 cm – 15 cm
- Lifespan
- 5 – 15 years
Ranges calculated from the entries that record the figure, not from all 3.
All 3 species of mussels on WAnimals
Each one has its own full entry. This group does not replace them: it brings them together.
Conservation status
No species documented in this group is genuinely at risk according to the IUCN, with the data available today.
See the global conservation statusWhere they live
Recorded in 70 countries. The ones with the most species in the group:
Where to see them
- Arrábida2 species
- Fragas do Eume2 species
- Islas Cies2 species
- Parque Nacional de Doñana2 species
- Ria Formosa2 species
- Sudoeste Alentejano e Costa Vicentina2 species
- Urdaibai2 species
- Al Hoceima1 species
- Albufera de Valencia1 species
- Alonissos y Esporadas del Norte1 species
- Archipielago de Cabrera1 species
- Arcipelago Toscano1 species
- Costa de los Acantilados (Cabo San Vicente)diving
- Farne Islandsdiving
- Gdansk (pecios bálticos)diving
- Islas Berlengasdiving
- Islas Cíesdiving
- Islas Farne (Longstone)diving
Did you know…
It chemically detects the release of gametes by other mussels nearby.
From Blue Mussel
It forms dense beds anchored to the rocks by byssus threads.
From Blue Mussel
It can live up to 24 years in good conditions.
From Blue Mussel
It is on the IUCN list of the 100 most damaging invasive alien species in the world for its ability to displace native mussels wherever it has been introduced.
From Mediterranean Mussel
The byssus threads stick underwater to almost any surface and have inspired the design of surgical adhesives.
From Mediterranean Mussel
Its beds create a three-dimensional microhabitat that shelters dozens of species of small invertebrates.
From Mediterranean Mussel
An invader that clogs pipes and channels; it reached the Ebro in 2001.
From Zebra Mussel
It is the only freshwater bivalve that attaches to hard surfaces with a byssus, as marine mussels do, and that is the key to its success as an invader: it colonises pipes, screens and hulls, which native freshwater clams do not.
From Zebra Mussel