If you do want to feed them, stick to foods they’d naturally seek out, such as:
- Grains
- Corn
- Carrots (shredded or finely chopped)
- Spinach and other leafy greens in bite-sized pieces
- Lettuce
Full Answer
What do swan mussels eat?
These attractive molluscs are filter feeders, feeding off debris, daphnia, and other small pond organisms. Swan Mussels can reach an adult size of 15 cm - 6", and can live up to 12 years if kept correctly. There is some contention as to whether these molluscs need moving, and highly aerated water, as they are generally found in streams, and rivers.
How do swan mussels reproduce?
In the wild, reproduction of the Swan Mussel depends on the presence of suitable fish hosts - usually Brown Trout ( Salmo trutta ), Dace ( Leuciscus leuciscus ), European Eel ( Anguilla anguilla ), Perch ( Perca fluviatilis ), Pike ( Esox lucius ), Stickleback ( Gasterosteus aculeatus ), Tench ( Tinca tinca ), or Zander ( Sander lucioperca ).
Do swan mussels need to be refrigerated?
The best way to store Swan mussels is in the refrigerator or freezer. You can also store them in a cool, dry, dark place. This will allow the product to last longer. If you don’t have a cool, dry, dark place, then you should keep them on the counter. They are still safe to eat as long as they are covered with water and submerged in it.
Can I put mussels in my pond?
The best thing to do with those wonderful looking Mussels is a very strong hard cheese, some Squid ink and grill the buggers, for all the use they'll be in your pond. Don't get me wrong, they'll look good, but what they eat is what the fish eat. all the little bugs and things. A muddy pond bottom is where they thrive. which is what you don't want.
What do I feed mussels?
Mussels eat a diet that consists of bacteria, algae, detritus, and other marine and free-floating creatures.Green algae.Cyanobacteria.Dinoflagellates.Coccolithophores.Diatoms.Copepods.Tiny crustaceans.By-products from symbiotic algae.More items...•
What can I feed a swan?
Grain, such as wheat, and vegetable matter, especially lettuce and potatoes, can be fed to swans. Food should be thrown into the water to avoid encouraging the birds onto the bank.
What do pond mussels eat?
phytoplanktonMussel Food Mussels are filter feeders, dining on phytoplankton and fine decaying organic matter. They suck water in across a set of gills by an “incurrent siphon” and expel the filtered water through a separate “excurrent siphon”.
What do nature swans eat?
What do swans eat? Swans living on fresh water will typically eat pondweed, stonewort and wigeon grass, as well as tadpoles and insects such as milfoil. Swans living on salt water will typically eat sea arrow grass, salt marsh grass, eel grass, club rush and green algae, as well as insects and molluscs.
Can swan eat oats?
Rich in vital minerals and protein, energy-rich rolled oats have a higher fat and oil content than many other grains making them an ideal food for ducks and swans all year round but especially in cold weather.
Are porridge oats good for swans?
Most swans and cygnets love them, and they are nutritious and very good value. Swans and cygnets also love sweetcorn, but it's not quite as nutritious. Porridge oats are good, but they are expensive, and they can be powdery leading to a lot of waste.
Can freshwater mussels survive in a pond?
Only a few species of common unionid mussels thrive in pond conditions. Those that thrive can develop large beds, but they usually do little harm to a pond. It is possible, though, that they will reach high enough numbers to filter the pond water, reducing the algae and leading to reduced growth of the fish.
Do swan mussels harm fish?
Due to the specialised reproductive cycle (see Breeding section below), it is not always advisable to keep Swan Mussels alongside fish, as there is the possibility of skin damage and secondary infection.
How do you take care of freshwater mussels?
Freshwater mussels are best kept in large outdoor containers, pools, or water gardens. Under such conditions they help filter the water and need little or no care.
What can I feed swans instead of bread?
Our general advice is not to feed swans bread, and instead feed them other things like corn, grains and lettuce. These types of food provide swans with much more nutritional benefits.
Is bread good for swans?
Swans will readily eat bread, they love bread and indeed it could be argued that bread is better than nothing if they are going hungry … However, bread lacks the essential nutrients a swan needs to be healthy.
Can you feed swans carrots?
Potato, carrot and other veg peelings are a great, no-cost option for feeding swans. Grains and unsweetened breakfast cereal. Grains are part of the swans' natural diet.
Is it bad to feed swans bread?
Supporters of the campaign claim that bread should not be fed to swans on the grounds that it is bad for them. This is not correct. Swans have been fed bread for many hundreds of years without causing any ill effects.
Can swans eat carrots?
feed items that are close to their natural diet. dark green lettuce, spinach, chopped/shredded carrots, celery and alfalfa sprouts and other vegetables and greens make a great supplement. Note that lettuce may be an acquired taste and the swans may take a while to get used to it.
Do swans eat raw potatoes?
But swans will eat raw potatoes. Flocks of them have been seen going over potato fields after harvest clearing up the leftovers. Vegetable peelings. Potato, carrot and other veg peelings are a great, no-cost option for feeding swans.
Can swans drink salt water?
They are designed for swimming and living in freshwater, and so they drink it as much as possible. Mute swans also drink freshwater over saltwater, even though swans CAN drink saltwater.
What is the best thing to feed swans?
Swans can survive quite happily without us feeding them. If you do want to feed them, stick to foods they’d naturally seek out, such as:
What should you not feed swans?
Feeding any processed human foods to swans can result in nutritional imbalances or lead to potentially dangerous digestive blockages, which can even be fatal.
What do baby swans eat?
After six weeks in an egg, baby swans, or cygnets, emerge into the world covered in fluffy down and with their eyes open. They are referred to as ‘precocial’ meaning that they are relatively mature from the moment they hatch. They’re ready for their first swim within a couple of days.
Do swans eat fish?
Swans are primarily vegetarian. Although, on occasion, they may eat fish, frogs, insects, worms, and molluscs, this is usually by chance. The victims probably just happen to be in the vicinity of a tasty chunk of vegetation the swan had decided to grab and don’t move away fast enough.
What do swans eat in the winter?
In freezing temperatures, the foods that swans typically forage may be in a shorter supply, so they'll seek alternatives such as berries and tubers. If you want to help them, go for leafy greens such as lettuce and spinach, and tear it into small pieces.
How do swans eat?
Swans don’t have teeth. To grind their food to a mush, they use a structure called a gizzard, which aids digestion by increasing the surface area of whatever food they swallow.
Can swans eat bread?
Many of us have fond memories of feeding bread to the swans in our local parks and rivers. However, opinion is severely divided as to whether it is harmful or not.
SWAN MUSSELS
Are giant swan mussels any good for water qaulity? Seen these on the bay
Re: SWAN MUSSELS
again a play on words "fiter feeders " yes they feed on fine particles , of food but inedible matter ie silt ,fish waste etc is expelled back into the water .they like all creatures like good food they do not eat all the floating particles and make gin clear water , however they may contribute partially in the search for clear water alongside your filter system ..
Re: SWAN MUSSELS
I always assume that any living thing only eats good and never eats the S&*t that others produce. As you say all working along side each other they may help with clear water but on their own they are useless and just a discussion point. As always thanks for the pointers.
Re: SWAN MUSSELS
Plants eat poo. its a simple as that. Alage maybe eaten by certain fish, but I am sure you would have a pond teaming with loach and nothing else. Toug I am going to put some weather loach in my pond just to see if they can catch anything the vegi filters dont.
Re: SWAN MUSSELS
Not aware of weather loach, what do they do and what do they look like?
Re: SWAN MUSSELS
The best thing to do with those wonderful looking Mussels is a very strong hard cheese, some Squid ink and grill the buggers, for all the use they'll be in your pond...Don't get me wrong, they'll look good, but what they eat is what the fish eat....all the little bugs and things...A muddy pond bottom is where they thrive..which is what you don't want..... .Or maybe a Spanish Marinara sauce.......
Re: SWAN MUSSELS
welsh_kai_boy wrote: Not aware of weather loach, what do they do and what do they look like?
