March of the Mussels

I added some new and interesting creatures to my aquarium “Freshwater Golden Mussels;” so why would I take as pets something one would expect to find on a menu at a fancy gourmet restaurant?

The answer is efficiency! Golden Mussels have a great gift in bio-filtering your tank by absorbing detritus and other organic elements from your water column. They are also compatible with snails, shrimp and other peaceful community creatures.

This little interesting clammy critter not only aids in the maintenance of your aquarium but they can manage in a wide variety of temperatures though extremes on either end should be avoided. They prefer harder water which is no surprise for such a creature.  

While many of the ninny’s and the nay-sayers would refer to these innocent shelled super-cleaners as “invasive” they are quite harmless and can be controlled easily. Like any “invasive” species they only become that way when humans carelessly discard them into the water systems.

These little creatures are a great part of any aquarium clean up crew.