''Trichomya'' is a

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...

genus of

marine Marine is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the sea or ocean. Marine or marines may refer to: Ocean * Maritime (disambiguation) * Marine art * Marine biology * Marine debris * Marine habitats * Marine life * Marine pollution Military * ...

bivalve Bivalvia (), in previous centuries referred to as the Lamellibranchiata and Pelecypoda, is a class of marine and freshwater molluscs that have laterally compressed bodies enclosed by a shell consisting of two hinged parts. As a group, bival ...

mollusc Mollusca is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda, the members of which are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 85,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized. The number of fossil species is esti ...

s in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Mytilidae, the mussels. The only species is ''Trichomya hirsuta'' which is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to southern and eastern Australia. Its common names include the hairy mussel, the greenling and the kelp greenling.

Description

The hairy mussel grows to a length of about . The lower valve of the shell has a dense covering of short hairs.

Distribution and habitat

The hairy mussel is found around the coasts of Tasmania and southern and eastern Australia as far north as

Cairns Cairns (, ) is a city in Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. The population in June 2019 was 153,952, having grown on average 1.02% annually over the preceding five years. The city is the 5th-most-p ...

. It lives on exposed reefs and among rocks and seaweed in the intertidal and

subtidal zone The neritic zone (or sublittoral zone) is the relatively shallow part of the ocean above the drop-off of the continental shelf, approximately in depth. From the point of view of marine biology it forms a relatively stable and well-illuminated ...

, attaching itself to hard surfaces using its

byssus A byssus () is a bundle of filaments secreted by many species of bivalve mollusc that function to attach the mollusc to a solid surface. Species from several families of clams have a byssus, including pen shells (Pinnidae), true mussels (Mytilid ...

threads.Mytilidae: ''Trichomya hirsuta'' (Lamarck, 1819) ('hairy mussel')
Molluscs of Tasmania. Retrieved 2012-05-21. It is an important constituent of the

seabed The seabed (also known as the seafloor, sea floor, ocean floor, and ocean bottom) is the bottom of the ocean. All floors of the ocean are known as 'seabeds'. The structure of the seabed of the global ocean is governed by plate tectonics. Most of ...

fauna where it forms dense beds of tangled material providing a habitat for other species.

Research

The hairy mussel is a major part of the

megafauna In terrestrial zoology, the megafauna (from Greek μέγας ''megas'' "large" and New Latin ''fauna'' "animal life") comprises the large or giant animals of an area, habitat, or geological period, extinct and/or extant. The most common threshold ...

Lake Macquarie The City of Lake Macquarie is a Local government in Australia, local government area in Greater Newcastle and part of the Hunter Region in New South Wales, Australia. It was proclaimed a city from 7 September 1984. The area is situated adjacent ...

, in New South Wales, Australia. Its dense growth tends to block condenser pipes and encrusts other submerged structures. It is tolerant of low oxygen levels in the water and its temperature tolerance range has been researched in connection with using the waters of the lake for cooling

power station A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electrical grid. Many p ...

s. It was found to be much less tolerant to changes of water temperature than the mussel '' Mytilus edulis'' and the clam '' Mya arenaria''.

Bivalve molluscs Bivalvia (), in previous centuries referred to as the Lamellibranchiata and Pelecypoda, is a class of marine and freshwater molluscs that have laterally compressed bodies enclosed by a shell consisting of two hinged parts. As a group, bival ...

tend to accumulate in their tissues any pollutants found in the surrounding waters and can be used as bioindicators. In a study of nine different species of mollusc found in tropical marine waters, it was concluded that the hairy mussel was the most suitable to monitor pollution. It reflected in its tissues the level of heavy metals (Pb, Cd, Cu, Zn, Co, Ni, and Ag) in its environment and there was a linear relationship between the sedimentary levels and the tissue concentration of all the metals except zinc.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q7840845 Mytilidae Monotypic mollusc genera Bivalve genera