Dead Zones: Mussels on beach

Credit: Andrew Altieri/Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute
November 10, 2014
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Credit: Andrew Altieri/Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute

Piles of mussels (Mytilus edulis) washed onto a beach after a dead zone event in Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island. Besides providing food and habitat for other creatures, mussels can also filter water. When mussels die, the bay loses its ability to clear water of phytoplankton, increasing the risk of future dead zones.