Field Guide

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

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

Unlike most other freshwater mussels, this species is hermaphrodic: An individual mussel can be both male and female.

A large dorsal wing and purple lining make identification of this widespread mussel easy.

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.

Shaped like a checkered gunstock, with its unique, turned-down edge, pistolgrips are easy to identify.

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

The shell of this mollusk is large and impressive in overall size. Although fairly flat, it can be more than 8 inches long. A large wing on the heelsplitter can be painful if you step on it.

The uniform shell thickness and hard, white nacre made this mussel a favorite for button manufacturing, in the days before most buttons were made of plastic.