Tyler-Walters, H.; Wilding, C.M. (2022). Fan mussel Atrina fragilis. Marine Life Information Network: Biology and Sensitivity Key Information Reviews, [on-line]. Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom: Plymouth. 31 pp. https://dx.doi.org/10.17031/marlinsp.1157.4
Part of: Marine Life Information Network: Biology and Sensitivity Key Information Reviews, [on-line]. Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom: Plymouth. , more
One of Britain’s largest and most threatened molluscs. It has a light golden or yellow-brown to dark brown shell reaching 30-48 cm long. The shell is triangular, tapering to a point, thin and brittle, making it very fragile. Fan mussels live with their pointed end embedded in sediment, attached to small stones or shells by abundant fine byssal threads. Between one and two-thirds of the shell is usually buried in the sediment. The posterior (broad) end protrudes from the surface of the sediment and may support growths of sea anemones, barnacles, hydroids and sponges. In the UK, it is often solitary but populations occur as small groups or patches of individuals forming smallbeds.
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