Author Topic: Freshwater mussels a good idea?  (Read 2475 times)

davholla

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Freshwater mussels a good idea?
« on: February 27, 2019, 15:14:08 »
There is a company which sells mussels to put in the pond.  Is this a good thing for the pond?

https://plantsforponds.co.uk/products/painters-mussels-unio-pictorum

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Painters Mussels-(Unio pictorum)

Feeding off pond debris and other small pond organisms, these native molluscs will help filter debris from your pond and clean the water as they do so. Suitable for medium to large ponds and lakes (or 1 mussel per cubic metre of water) as they can grown to 12cm by 5cm in size.

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This is a small pond for wildlife no fish

ancellsfarmer

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Re: Freshwater mussels a good idea?
« Reply #1 on: February 28, 2019, 09:55:45 »
Might be good for the pond but unlikely to be good for the mussels! Best suited to either fast flowing or well oxygenated fresh water, they may survive but require fish as hosts as part of their reproductive procedure. Water snails might be better suited to your pond.
Freelance cultivator qualified within the University of Life.

 

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