Thanks to Art for this information, for those not getting home delivery of
the Cincinnati Enquirer, the article is at:
http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050123/NEWS01/501230417
It is always fun to read popular articles for the mistakes.  Two statements
seemed improbabe. The first was the Megalonaias shell was used for it had
black material which made black pearls in Asia.  Well Megalonaias does have
dark or discolored portions of the nacre, the U.S. freshwater pearl material
inserted into Asian shells should not affect the color, as the mussel into
which it is inserted will create an outer layer of the same shell
material/color as it's nacre.  The second was that the mussels were
important in the food chain as food particles they excrete are used by other
acquatic animals.  Well mussels are filter feeders and the effluent of
material they do not utilize would be exactly the same material already in
the water and available for other animals.  By chance are they alluding to
mussel fecal material?   Still an interesting article that the lowly
freshwater clam is a valuable shell, and in life there are cattle rustlers
and also clam rustlers. . .

Alan Gettleman
Merritt Island, FL
----- Original Message -----
From: <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Sunday, January 23, 2005 10:09 AM
Subject: mussels


> Dear All;-
>    Todays Cincinnati Enquirer has a front page article on modern mussel
rustlers. It reports that the endangered "Washboard Mussel" is being rustled
from the Licking River in Kentucky and being sold to Japan and China for use
in making cultured black pearls. The Washboard mussel can grow up to ten
inches and live up to 100 years.---if allowed to.
>     Art
>
> PLEASE NOTE: My new, long-term, and correct email address is:
[log in to unmask] Please update your records!
>
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