Swan Mussels , can someone help ????

Question

I asked this question last night but no-one could help . One of my swan mussels has left its shell and is moving around freely . I have looked all over the internet and can't understand why or if its alright , please can someone help ????

Answer 1

Umm :O

We have swan mussels, but.. none have done this!!! It must look really odd actually..

If he's moving around, he must be "ok".. try and make sure nothing can nibble at him, and see if he returns to his shell, or whether he dies..

I really don't know how to help you.. but if you could leave your question open for a couple of days and say how he's doing, or tell us if he returns, I for one would appreciate it! Unless someone can give an explanation of course, heh..

Good luck!

Answer 2

I've never kept swans, but I've had some US native mussels. It's not a good sign to have them leave their shell.
I couldn't begin to guess at why yours did, but there must have been a reason for it to do so.

Since they're burrowers, perhaps where it was put it wasn't able to dig into the bottom? Do you have adequate filtration and water movement that it could get enough dissolved oxygen at the bottom? Was the previous location in shallow, open water where the temperature may have been too warm?Do they have enough food, or do you target feed them? Perhaps if you look at the differences between where it was, and where it is now, you might get some clue as to why the new location is preferable to the old.

I'd also look at the interior of the shell and the mussel itself to make sure there aren't any parasites infecting it, or rough areas that would irritate the mussel.

You might also try contacting the source where it was purchased and see if they might have some idea why yours is doing this.