Swingle did some tests with Lampsilis claibornensis. This is a common mussel in the south though not sure if it is found in Atlantic drainages. It is edible and his interest in the mussel was for a co-crop. In his trials, he grew more fish (LMB and BG) with mussels than without them. His thoughts were that mussels improved water quality. He cropped the production ponds of mussels each year and there were over 1100 lbs/acre of them still remaining at end of the 5 year study. The standing weight of mussel meat was over 350 lbs/acre. He thought studies surrounding the effects of mussels on fish production was worth pursuing though I am not aware of any additional research conducted by him.
In Oklahoma, there is a unionid that frequently finds its way into ponds and the same mussel is common also in creeks with intermittent flow. Coons love them as do Big Blues.
It's time to start a mussel movement. Let's make adding mussels to your pond as mainstream as adding FHM.
On a serious note, I Googled the research on Lampsilis Claibornensis and it's some interesting stuff. Even if you don't have fish that will eat the mussels (like LMB), it sounds like they'd be beneficial, by providing better water clarity and quality.
