Charru mussel

Scientific name

Mytella strigata

Key features

Key features of Charru mussel include:

• broad range of shell colours - black, dark bluish, brown, grey and orange
• range of shell patterns - zig zags, spots or concentric bands
• shell beak generally short * Shell 2 - 7cm long.

Habitat

The Charru mussel:

• attaches to hard surfaces like vessels, wharves, aquaculture equipment, buoys, intake pipes etc.
• can form dense beds on or in the sediment
• found from mid-tide mark to 8m deep.

Impacts

The Charru mussel:

• fast-growing, displaces native species
• causes major fouling of infrastructure.

Knowing established populations

The Charru mussel is currently not present in Victoria.