Reproduction and Settlement of Mytilus Edulis on an Exposed Rocky Shore in Galway Bay, West Coast of Ireland

Abstract

The marine mussel, Mytilus edulis, is a widely distributed bivalve, especially abundant on wave washed exposed rocky shores (Lewis, 1964). Investigations on the reproductive and settlement cycles of M. edulis in Irish waters have concentrated to date on sheltered shore populations (Wilson & Seed, 1974; Seed & Brown, 1975; Rodhouse et al., 1984; McKenzie, 1986). An exception to this is a brief account of settlement in Bantry Bay (Cross & Southgate, 1983). Elsewhere in Europe, investigations on the biology of exposed-shore mussels is restricted to the extensive studies of Seed (1969) on the north-east coast of Britain.