The MUSSELp is the MUSSEL Project, an internet resource to support research on the systematics of freshwater mussels (and other bivalves).

The MUSSELpdb is the MUSSEL Project Database, providing current information on the the taxonomy, nomenclature, literature, specimens, phylogeny, and other data supporting research on freshwater mussel evolution and ecology.

MUSSELp

Browse the MUSSELp Database!
The Freshwater Mussels (Unionoida) of the World
(and other less consequential bivalves)

Search the database pages:

The searching function is handled by a Google Custom Search Engine.

Ortmanniana pectorosaThe September 2025 Mussel of the Month is Ortmanniana pectorosa. The taxonomy of the genus Ortmanniana is complicated.

Unless you have lived your life in the minutia of freshwater mussel nomenclature, you, gentle malacologist, might know our Mussel of the Month as Actinonaias pectorosa, but we call this animal Ortmanniana pectorosa — at least for now.

Visit the Mussel of the Month Archive.

The MUSSEL Project Database Dashboard

The MUSSELpdb-db is a quick summary of the current state of freshwater mussel species & genus richness, according to the MUSSEL Project Database (the MUSSELpdb).
Current Number of Freshwater Mussel Species:

1026

Current Number of Freshwater Mussel Genera:

217

Last Updated
Thu 3 September 2025


Click here for a detailed summary of species and genus richness by taxonomy.


Click here for a detailed summary of species richness and endemism by geography.

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"Making the world a better place, one mollusk at a time."