California Floater Mussels Take Fish For an Epic Joyride
From Deep Look
5 min3rd4th5th6thScience
Summary
A freshwater mussel can't move far -- so its babies hitch a ride on a passing fish to reach new waters. Deep Look shows this surprising stage in the mussel's life cycle, when tiny larvae clamp onto a fish's gills.
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Teaching resources
Discussion questions
Talk about it
Baby mussels, called glochidia, latch onto a fish's gills and ride along while they grow. When they drop off, they've reached a brand-new place to settle. Hitchhiking is one stage in the mussel's life cycle.
- How do baby mussels travel to new places?
- Why can't the adult mussel spread its babies on its own?
- What stage of the life cycle is the fish ride?
Quick work-a-long
Vocabulary: larva, life cycle, glochidia, disperse.
Try it: Draw a fish with tiny mussels on its gills swimming to a new pond. Write how the ride helps baby mussels spread out.