Mass mussel deaths on a German island: what happened to the mollusks
Kyiv • UNN
A large number of dead American mooring mussels were found on the coast of Norderney Island due to the extreme cold. The mussels were unable to burrow into the sand due to low water and air temperatures.
A huge number of dead mussels were found on the northern coast of the German island of Norderneuil in the North Sea. This happened due to the extreme cold. This is reported by BILD, according to UNN.
Details
The night tide brought the clams ashore, and due to the extremely low water and air temperatures, they were unable to burrow into the sand, leading to their death from the cold.
American mooring mussels, which can grow up to 17 cm in length, were particularly affected.
This species was introduced to the North Sea only in 1979 and is much less tolerant of frost than the local species. In addition to the mussels, frozen starfish were also found among the dead marine life.
Such phenomena occur once every few years and, according to local authorities, do not pose a threat to the ecosystem.
The American mooring mussel is characterized by high fecundity, so its population is not threatened.
For the seagulls, this situation is a real feast, as they have a rare opportunity to eat a lot of easy prey.
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