Menu
Home
People
Places
Arts
History
Plants & Animals
Science
Life & Culture
Technology
Reference.org
Zebra mussel
open-in-new
<p>The zebra mussel (<i>Dreissena polymorpha</i>) is a small freshwater <a href="/facts/Mussel/SNdrkjfl">mussel</a>, an <a href="/facts/Aquatic_animal/tY7gyRWl">aquatic</a> <a href="/facts/Bivalve/IQDxHVc8">bivalve</a> <a href="/facts/Mollusk/1elgknsQ">mollusk</a> in the family <a href="/facts/Dreissenidae/z13Uf01E">Dreissenidae</a>. The species originates from the lakes of southern Russia and Ukraine, but has been accidentally <a href="/facts/Introduced_species/s0aHefyp">introduced</a> to numerous other areas and has become an <a href="/facts/Invasive_species/Ya1v6RGx">invasive species</a> in many countries worldwide. Since the 1980s, the species has invaded the <a href="/facts/Great_Lakes/Fd7pDkPX">Great Lakes</a>, <a href="/facts/Hudson_River/dGgu7VFE">Hudson River</a>, <a href="/facts/Lake_Travis/nhvHJGcN">Lake Travis</a>, <a href="/facts/Finger_Lakes/3AeDBmBR">Finger Lakes</a>, <a href="/facts/Lake_Bonaparte_(New_York)/UasQjevk">Lake Bonaparte</a>, and <a href="/facts/Lake_Simcoe/Ru8KpG4r">Lake Simcoe</a>. The adverse effects of dreissenid mussels on freshwater systems have led to their ranking as one of the world's most invasive aquatic species. </p><p>The species was first described in 1769 by German zoologist <a href="/facts/Peter_Simon_Pallas/IkTINExs">Peter Simon Pallas</a> in the <a href="/facts/Ural_River/TyVBKfaq">Ural</a>, <a href="/facts/Volga_River/B96tkIJj">Volga</a>, and <a href="/facts/Dnieper_River/RLJ1G8pH">Dnieper</a> Rivers. Zebra mussels get their name from a striped pattern commonly seen on their shells, though it is not universally present. They are usually about the size of a fingernail, but can grow to a maximum length around 50 mm (2 in). Their shells are D-shaped, and attached to the substrate with strong <a href="/facts/Byssus/7heAVVFr">byssal</a> fibers, which come out of their <a href="/facts/Umbo_(bivalve)/sjbkSoS9">umbo</a> on the dorsal (hinged) side. </p> <p>Right and left valve of the same specimen: </p> <p>Zebra Mussels are commonly found in lake Ontario </p>