Field Guide

A common mussel in some areas, deertoe have decorative green markings.

A widespread mussel that relies on freshwater drum as host fish for the developing young.

When a floater dies, this large mussel with a thick shell will actually rise to the water surface and float as it decays.

These diminutive mollusks are the smallest of Missouri’s freshwater mussels.

The mapleleaf spawns in the summer, using catfish as a host.

One of the most widespread and numerous mussels in southern Missouri.

While the pimpleback is usually bumpy, some individuals are perfectly smooth.

This species enjoys the same geographic distribution in our state as the pink heelsplitter, and it generally resembles that species, too. But as the name suggests, the pink papershell usually has a thinner shell and is smaller. Also, it prefers rather shallow water with a good current.

The plain pocketbook is one of the most common and widespread mussels in our state. It is oval, relatively large, and occurs frequently.

Among all the mussels of Missouri, this is perhaps the easiest to recognize: As the shell grows, large knobs are produced, first on one shell and then on the other, in an alternating pattern.