This species may grow to 4 inches long and can often be found living with barnacles and seaweed on rocks and pilings in brackish waters. Blue mussels are distributed worldwide in most polar and temperate waters. Off North America, they occur from Canada to North Carolina. As demand increases, wild populations must be supplemented by aquaculture so that depletion of national beds does not occur. Demand surpassed supply in Europe a long time ago, and their mussel culture has been going on for 300 years.
Mussels are the most efficient feeders compared to other shellfish.
They have a third more protein than oysters. A mussel will filter 10-15 gallons of water a day, consuming virtually everything in it. The mussels that caused the outbreak were found to contain demonic acid, a toxin not previously found in shellfish. As a result, mussels are monitored to assure their safety. While some aficionados maintain that mature females taste better, there's no scientific evidence to back this up.