Mytilus californianus   Conrad, 1837

California mussel

Native range | All suitable habitat | Point map | Year 2050
This map was computer-generated and has not yet been reviewed.
Mytilus californianus  AquaMaps  Data sources: GBIF OBIS
Upload your photos 
Google image |
Image of Mytilus californianus (California mussel)
No image available for this species;
drawing shows typical species in Mytilidae.

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | CoL | ITIS | WoRMS

Bivalvia | Mytilida | Mytilidae

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Benthic; depth range 0 - 100 m (Ref. 95344), usually 0 - 30 m (Ref. 104320).  Temperate; 62°N - 18°N, 180°W - 109°W

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Introductions

Eastern Pacific: from Aleutian Islands, Alaska, USA to Baja California and Isla Socorro, Mexico. Subtropical to boreal.

Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm Max length : 25.5 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 95344); common length : 20.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 312)

Short description Morphology

Shell with blue, black and irregular groove lines. Often create dense mats. Mats can form habitats for more than 100 other species (Ref. 312).

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

It has a shell length of 20 cm long (Ref. 312). Found in dense colonies on wharf piles and surf exposed rocks in the mid to high tide zone. Its diet include fine organic detritus, living plankton, especially dinoflagellates; when the water exceeds a certain temperature, often from late May through October, mussels feed on dinoflagellates that make them poisonous for humans to eat (Ref. 312). Very dominant competitor in an intertidal bed. Prefers to settle on other mussels and barnacles, giving it a competitive advantage (Ref. 104225). Predators are ochre star, dogwinkle, and humans (Ref. 312). Occurs from mid to high tide mark (Ref. 312).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Life cycle: Egg develops into the first free-swimming larval stage (trocophore) within 4 to 24 hours, afterwhich it develops into a veliger larvae within 24 to 48 hours. The veliger secretes the first larval shell within 10 to 12 hours, which then develops into a velichoncha larvae which secretes the second larval shell. It further develops into pediveliger, with a characterized foot making it mobile to find a suitable substrate and able to feed. It metamorphoses into a post-larval mussel called plantigrade (Ref. 104799).

Main reference References | Coordinator | Collaborators

Gallivan, G. and J. Danforth. 1999. (Ref. 312)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435)


CITES status (Ref. 108899)

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

Human uses

Fisheries: commercial
| FishSource | Sea Around Us

Tools

More information

Common names
Synonyms
Predators
Reproduction
Maturity
Spawning
Fecundity
Eggs
Egg development
Age/Size
Growth
Length-weight
Length-length
Morphology
Larvae
Abundance
References
Mass conversion

Internet sources

BHL | BOLD Systems | CISTI | DiscoverLife | FAO(Publication : search) | Fishipedia | GenBank (genome, nucleotide) | GloBI | Gomexsi | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | PubMed | Tree of Life | Wikipedia (Go, Search) | Zoological Record

Estimates based on models

Preferred temperature (Ref. 115969): 8.6 - 14.3, mean 10.1 (based on 140 cells).
Price category (Ref. 80766): Low.