Does swan mussel larvae harm fish?

Question

I'm thinking of introducing some swan mussels into my pond to help clean it up. When the larvae of swan mussels attach themselves to fish, do they cause lasting problems? The websites I've looked at say that the fish develops a cyst, but that the larva drops off when it's the right size - but no-one mentions whether or not this could be a potential problem for the fish. My pond has orfes, goldfish and shibunkins.
I'd really appreciate any personal experience on this please. Many thanks in advance!

Answer 1

Sorry, I dont have any personal experience on this, but seeing as I am the first to answer, I might be of a little help.

You say you want them to keep the pond clean - you would need hundreds in a pond to have a noticable effect. Infact, its quiet the opposite, you NEED clean water for them to live in. Scientists use the amount of freshwater mussels in rivers and lakes (amoung other things) to test for cleanliness of the water - they will only live in clean water.

Yeh, they do attach to the fish, and I am guessing that the fish will heal up most of the time, but that sometimes it will cause a small lasting scare. Also, however, it will cause stress to the fish, and comprmise its immune system, surely you dont want that for your fish?

Just get a filter big enough for the pond you've got, make sure your not over stocking it (about 55cm per 1000 litres of pond volume (100" per 1000 gallons)). And make sure your not over feeding it. Make sure there are no leaves falling into the pond, and that you do some partial water changes every so often in summer (ideally 20% per week ish, and use some dechlorinater). Grow some plants in it, that cover, maybe, 30-50% of the surface, and weed them out regularly (being careful NOT to let them get into natural rivers and lakes).

If you do all that, you pond will be fine.

Ashley