Fishing Forum

[font "Times New Roman"][#000000][font "Times New Roman"]Hey all, [/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]I am a student studying American freshwater mussels. I live in Massachusetts where unfortunately there are not that many mussels to find. I am looking for people who come across the little (sometime not so little) buggers when outdoors. I would love anyone who finds the muskrat middens on the side of the rivers/lakes (or how ever they come across the mussels) to box up a bunch of paired fellas big and small and send them my way. I am only looking for spent/empty shells, not live specimens. I collect and study and write about all the different species. I'm not concered about big or small, the more different ones the better. Anyone who would be able to help me with my studies by just picking up a bunch of the ones you find while fishing would be a HUGE help in my studies. I would certainly compensate you for your effort and of course pay for shipping too. The only requirements would be that you provide matching paired (not single) valves and that they are not totally broken (they don't have to be absolutely perfect with no chips at all, but the cleaner with their natural "skin" the better). I've been trying to make contacts with people across the country that naturally run into mussels while out fishing or hiking that might be able to just pick up shells they come across without it being a big hassle for them. I can't thank enough anyone who would consider assisting me with this project. You can contact me through this site or directly at [url "mailto:kczaja@fas.harvard.edu"]kczaja@fas.harvard.edu[/url]. Thank You!!!!! And good fishing!!! [/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]-Kevin[/font][/#000000][/font]
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I live on the shore's of Lake Ontario. I would be happy to box up a few Zebra Mussel's for you.

The waters are very cold so getting them now would be tough. what is your time frame?
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Hello web-fisherman,
thanks so much for the reply and the kind offer. I actually don't study the invasive zebra mussels, but actually the native pearly mussels the zebra mussels are driving to near extinction in the great lakes. If you ever come across any native mussels (which is pretty much any freshwater mussel you might find that is bigger than a inch), I would definitely be interested. My work does not really have a time limit. I'm in a program that will last at least 5 years, and I intend to keep studying native mussels even after graduation. If you find specimens as things warm up, that would be wonderful. I posted a picture below of a poor native mussel from I believe Wisconsin being smothered by those prolific zebra mussels. It is from fws.gov.
-Take care, Kevin[inline zebra_mussels_on_native2_620.jpg]
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Kevin,

Extremely interesting. If I collect some mussels for you could you tell me what they are? All Along, I thought the mussels that are infesting the great lakes are Zebra.

I will try to get you some of these soon. I will send you an email.

Best Regards,

Mike
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Hello Mike,
well you are not really wrong. The mussels that are presently infesting the great lakes are Zebra mussels. Its just that before they were unfortunately introduced from Asia, the great lakes were happily filled with native pearly mussels. The pearly mussels are still there, but they are much less plentiful due to host of reasons including being smothered by zebra mussels. If you can find some of the native mussel for me, that would be excellent.
-Thank so much, Kevin

PS,
I posted below some pics of native mussels which as I said, a typically much bigger than those pesky Zebra mussels.

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[left]PS, yes of course I will tell you exactly what they are. And if you want to have some fun on your own, you might want to check out the following US gov. website on freshwater mussels of the Upper Mississippi River.
[left][url "http://www.fws.gov/midwest/mussel/"]http://www.fws.gov/midwest/mussel/[/url]
[left]-Kevin
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you should post in Idaho because they have lots of fresh water mussels in the snake river system. The sturgeon eat them. They stir them up off the bottom and suck them up.
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Hello Idahofishin,
thanks for the reply and the suggestion. I will definitely post there. I wasn't sure if it was a bit early to do so though with the winter and all. I was initially focusing on the warmer states. But I did notice there was still active participation in the Idaho forum even at this time of year. That's fishing dedication!
-Take care, Kevin
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We live between Lake Cumberland & Laurel Lake in Somerset, KY. There are millions of shells on a creek/river bed near our home in which we visit often. After spending the last couple days swimming and exploring that area. The kids decided to do some research. We found live mussels today, and were trying to find out more about them. Thanks for posting the info you have.
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It's been about 2 1/2 years since you posted your request. Are you still interested in receiving specimens? We live near the Rock River in southcentral Wisconsin. While floating the river today, we found a number of mussel shells.
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Hello Melissa,
I'm glad the information was helpful! And if you ever have any questions, I'll do my best to answer them! I should add one other bit of info about the freshwater bivalves you might find in Kentucky (and most of the rest of America). Other than Zebra mussels, there is one other invasive species that is quite common, but not a native freshwater mussel. This is called the Asian Clam. Below is a picture. Asian Clams are typically smaller than native mussels (reaching a max of 1.5 inches, but usually smaller than an inch), and round to triangular in shape. They also never have the "pearly" sheen inside the shell (but rather are plain white, sometimes with a purple tinge near the hinge).

And if you ever do have extra empty native mussel shells you might find and can share, I am very much still involved in my mussel studies.
-Take care, Kevin
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Hello SD,
thanks for the reply. I sent you a email reply directly.
-Take care, Kevin
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