We'll tell you what happens when mussels go fishing. We're talking here about freshwater mussels. Adult mussels are shellfish that live on the bottom of a river or stream. They spend their larval stage as parasites clinging to fish. A few mussel species have evolved a unique fishing technique to snag a host fish.
Females produce packets containing larvae.
The packets dance in the current, attached to female mussels by an invisible thread. Then, instead of getting a meal, the fish become the food. The mussel larvae feed on the host fish's tissue. Days later, they drop from the fish and evolve into juvenile mussels. With thanks to the National Science Foundation , we're Block and Byrd for Earth and Sky.