Show Us Your Mussels - View Findings
You’ll see below details of the blue mussels found around the Forth of Forth so far. Thanks to everyone who has contributed. We’ll continue to share insights into this as more sightings come in. Headings with up / down arrows beside them can be used to sort the records.
N.B. exact blue mussel locations are not being publicly shared as we have had reports of them then being taken for food. Given their scarcity, we have taken the decision to leave their locations around the Forth private and just for our individual volunteers. We hope you understand.
PHOTOGRAPHS - please upload any photographs you took (up to 3 photos per record) | ANY OTHER USEFUL INFO YOU CAN SHARE? | |||
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 Hinged Dead blue mussel shell - (both sides still joined) |  Shale / shell surface | Very few hinged shells apart from this small spot. Lots of individual unhinged shells on the beach itself though. | 10/11/2024 15:00 | |
 Unhinged Dead blue mussel shell - (just one side) |  Sandy surface | 10/12/2024 15:00 | ||
| Unhinged Dead blue mussel shell - (just one side) | Sandy surface | Tyninghame beach which would be square 91 if assigned! Sandy beach and rocky shore comprising bedrock and boulders. Very few single mussel shells on the upper shore | 13/09/2024 17:00 | |
| Unhinged Dead blue mussel shell - (just one side) | Sandy surface | Also rocky shore including boulders and bedrock. A single blue mussel shell noted on the strandline | 16/09/2024 16:00 | |
| Unhinged Dead blue mussel shell - (just one side) | Sandy surface | Not much in this small harbour area at low tide. | 30/08/2024 20:00 | |
| Unhinged Dead blue mussel shell - (just one side) | Sandy surface | There were two areas close to each other which had a number of single unhinged shells. ending.nicer.quits sulk.unicorns.arriving | 30/08/2024 20:00 | |
| Unhinged Dead blue mussel shell - (just one side) | Sandy surface | There were a few single unhinged shells on this small beach. Each location only had 1-2 shells so I have grouped them into this one entry. nutrients.vented.badminton bloomers.acrobatic.glorified revise.outbid.beaten copper.both.grad cartoons.crimson.should extreme.worthy.brisk | 30/08/2024 20:00 | |
| Unhinged Dead blue mussel shell - (just one side) | Sandy surface | Seabed changed from Western section of Square 13 from sandy/silt to sand at Eastern End of the square lots of shells, Razors, Periwinkles, Cockles and Queen Scallops and old Oyster Shells. Certainly more dead mussel shells as you go further East but still very sparse. Rocky Outcrops covered in Bladder Wrack and kelp but no mussels to be found underneath, lots of old Barnacles and lots of Cockles, more the further East you go. Happy to check this Square when winter storms have moved kelp and wrack but disappointing to not find one! | 17/11/2024 09:00 | |
 Bed of blue mussels (2M span or more) | Sandy surface | 14/11/2024 08:00 | ||
| Bed of blue mussels (2M span or more) | Sandy surface | Small babies | 14/11/2024 08:00 | |
| Unhinged Dead blue mussel shell - (just one side) | Sandy surface | We found 215 unhinged shells. | 29/11/2024 09:00 | |
| Bed of blue mussels (2M span or more) | Sandy surface | Large rock surrounded by sand covered in babies. | 14/11/2024 08:00 | |
| Bed of blue mussels (2M span or more) | Sandy surface | Babies in an individual rock on all sides and top. | 14/11/2024 07:00 | |
| Unhinged Dead blue mussel shell - (just one side) | Sandy surface | Most of the shore in square 24 was inaccessible. The accessible area were at the eastern and western edges of the square. No live mussels or hinged shells were found, but there were thousands of single dead mussel shells. Hard surfaces in the square were well covered by green and brown seaweeds, limpets, periwinkles and barnacles. | 19/11/2024 10:00 | |
 Cluster of live blue mussels |  Rocky surface | Clusters and single mussels well tucked in to rocky outcrops at Aberlady Point | 24/11/2024 15:00 | |
| Unhinged Dead blue mussel shell - (just one side) | Rocky surface | Live mussels absent. Rocky substrate with many gullies, crevices etc looked like ideal mussel territory. 'Normal' sort of density of limpets and barnacles, some periwinkles. Luxuriant growth of Acsophyllum seaweed, some mixed fucoids, mainly serratus on lower shore. | 08/10/2024 10:00 | |
 Individual Live Mussel | Rocky surface | 2 adult individuals located in separate cracks and crevices on a large boulder on East Beach rocky shore (just below Seabird Centre) | 21/11/2024 10:00 | |
| Cluster of live blue mussels | Rocky surface | You will note from the date this is a retrospective photo from 2023. I had noticed we had old mussels and babies but nothing in between. I took photos here in the latter part of 2023 until they disappeared in October. My plan is to monitor this area again as there are new mussels on the rocks again- see further reports. | 18/06/2023 09:00 | |
| Cluster of live blue mussels | Rocky surface | Single rock on a bed of sand | 15/10/2024 08:00 | |
 X - None | Rocky surface | No evidence of mussels | 03/11/2024 09:00 | |
| Bed of blue mussels (2M span or more) | Rocky surface | South facing rock, only juveniles >5 mm | 15/11/2024 09:00 | |
| Unhinged Dead blue mussel shell - (just one side) | Rocky surface | Very few mussel shells in strandline. Although very small numbers of single shells overall most were towards West end of the square. | 16/08/2024 18:00 | |
| Bed of blue mussels (2M span or more) | Rocky surface | Extensive beds of young mussels | 18/10/2024 10:00 | |
| Cluster of live blue mussels | Rocky surface | Single rock, covered with clusters of mature(6cm) and juvenile mussels(5mm). | 15/11/2024 08:00 | |
| Bed of blue mussels (2M span or more) | Rocky surface | Not one large continuous bed but multiple clusters and a few beds of very small mussels across a wide area. | 21/10/2024 10:00 |