Electric? And murderers? Are mussels dangerous?

When I think of mussels, mussels or a Plat de fruits de mer come to mind. But here in Palau there is something special: electric clams and killer clams... Is that correct?

I'll start with the electric clam or disco shell. This can be found in places where there is normally little light. The diver, equipped with a flashlight, can find them in depressions in walls. It looks as if small lightning bolts are constantly running back and forth on the sides of the shell. Of course, you can see it much better in the video and it looks exciting. It was only recently proven that it is just a small fold of skin that reflects the light from the flashlight. And because this fold of skin moves particularly quickly, it looks like small lightning bolts.

In another place, in the open reef, flooded with light, you can find the killer clam. These mussels can live for 100 years and become very large over that time. 1m to 1.4m in length are already included. The shell becomes approx. 10 cm thick. Sure, you can imagine that if your hand comes in and “closes” the shell, then that’s it… But unfortunately these shells don’t have the ability to close the small shells quickly. They close very slowly, so they are not a danger or murderers.

What's more true is that these giant clams are highly endangered and that's why there are programs here in Palau to breed these clams.

What is interesting, however, is the fact that these giant clams live in symbiosis with an algae and this provides 60-70% of the mussel's food.

And hard to believe; Mussels have many visual receptors on their sides, nice to see in the next photo... as a diver you are well observed. Every black dot on the edge is an eye!

The diverse aspects will definitely come to mind again with the next Plat de Fruit de Mer.