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Project Noah Nature School
Brachidontes rostratus
These mussels were about 40 mm long. The purple shells had black rims with thin curved lines.
They were seen in clusters and were of varying sizes.
On exposed rocks - rocky shoreline in the intertidal area ( Cape Conran, Victoria)
Occurrence record:
https://bie.ala.org.au/species/urn:lsid:...
Like all mussels these are filter feeders. Males and females release spawn into the water and fertilisation is external. Larvae float around for weeks as plankton, finally attaching themselves to rocks by byssus threads and developing into adults.
phylum : MOLLUSCA
class : BIVALVIA
subclass: AUTOBRANCHIA
infraclass: PTERIOMORPHIA
order: MYTILIDA
family: MYTILIDAE
subfamily: MYTILINAE
Spotted on Mar 22, 2018
Submitted on Mar 28, 2018
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