Great Kills

Peter: 27th Feb 2006 - 20:36 GMT

wow, youre recent series of frozen nature has been going great! i lvoe these shots. especially the 4th one. it looks like an ironically frozen mangrove marsh... or perhaps hibernating tube-worms or something. wonderful!

Hobart: 27th Feb 2006 - 21:23 GMT

Top notch, as usual, GGP!

GGP: 27th Feb 2006 - 21:25 GMT

elaine: those are mussels.
peter: go tube-worms!
& thanks to all.

elaine: 27th Feb 2006 - 22:22 GMT

mm, either i haven't been looking properly or they look different to mussels here, the ribs on the outside threw me.

GGP: 27th Feb 2006 - 22:45 GMT

yeah, i see what you mean, elaine...although i think there are lots of different types of mussels. but i admit, i'm no bivalve expert. ;)

GGP: 27th Feb 2006 - 22:47 GMT

got this by entering "atlantic mussels" on google images--i saw the threads and all...but who knew i was walking on a "gut"??

Atlantic Ribbed Mussel (Geukensia demissa)
You'll most likely find these edible dark brown mussels projecting from the mud along marsh creeks (guts) and often among the marsh grass. Their shells are distinguished from most other mussel shells by the ribs that line the surfaces. Ribbed mussels are found along most of the East Coast; those in the photo were spotted at the edge of a gut by Toms Cove (see map).

The mussels attach themselves with tough byssus threads (lower photo, left side) to the marsh grass or other solid objects in the mud. These threads are secreted by a gland in their foot.

While many bivalves filter feed through a pair of siphons that draw in water and then expel it, mussels do not. When covered by the tide, mussels open slightly, and cilia, small hairs on the gills, draw in water and the food in it--usually algae--to the mouth.

When the tide is out, the mussels close, retaining waste products toxic to humans. For this reason, collecting mussels at low tide is usually avoided.

Elicar: 28th Feb 2006 - 02:33 GMT

Thanks GPP! Mussels would be the #2 in my dietary restrictions. #1 is raccoons.

joey: 28th Feb 2006 - 05:43 GMT

www.abcgallery.com/T/tanguy/tanguy6a.JPG

elaine: 28th Feb 2006 - 08:37 GMT

mmmmmmmmmmmmmm mussels. they are very very good to eat. you buy them live and they wash themselves in a bucket for a coupla hours, then you cook them and eat them out of their jackets. you might, but i never have. i have only ever had them cooked for me. iam not a very timid eater, but i am a fairly timid cook.
thanks for the research, ggp.

grange: 28th Feb 2006 - 16:26 GMT

elaine , mussles boiled on the beach on a warm summer night ...iwth some favorate beverage , a blanket .... ya ..come on summer. I miss you

grange: 28th Feb 2006 - 16:27 GMT

oh yes , and a girl ( in my case ) dont forget the girl ..

jack: 28th Feb 2006 - 18:47 GMT

very good ggp that was interesting about the toxins. my wife cleans and then steams the mussels when they open she breaks them in half and puts bread crumbs with olive oil and tomato sauce she made that week and tops with a grana padana cheese. is it good! im drooling now so excuse me.
grange be nice to the girl, she may just become your wife.

kc: 1st Mar 2006 - 02:06 GMT

I rather like that clam with stick composition.
And btw, since this is such an informative post:

Mussel Shoals, CA: "If Rincon’s the Saks Fifth Avenue of California pointbreaks, then Mussel Shoals, located a mile south of the queen of the coast, would have to the JCPenney." (Quote from some web site)

Muscle Shoals, AL:
The city is one of four cities known as the Quad Cities, the others being Florence, Sheffield and Tuscumbia. Muscle Shoals is known for recording many hit songs in the 1960s and 70s by artists such as James & Bobby Purify, Arthur Alexander, Wilson Pickett, Aretha Franklin, the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Michael Jackson, The Osmonds, Alvin and the Chipmunks, 2 Live Crew, Etta James, Clarence Carter, Otis Redding, Duane Allman, Mac Davis, Paul Anka, Ronnie Milsap, Jerry Reed, John Michael Montgomery, Reba McEntire, Blackhawk, and Shenandoah. Bo Bice, of American Idol fame, even recorded there before his fame on the popular television show. Although Muscle Shoals has receded somewhat from its 1960s and 1970s status as "Hit Recording Capital of the World," as a sign near the airport says, it remains an important and enduring landmark location for the American recording industry. With careful city planning, however, it should have no trouble in maintaining the deserved title of "Metal Building Capital of the World".
In the song "Sweet Home Alabama," by Lynyrd Skynyrd a verse states that "Muscle Shoals has got the Swampers." The "Swampers" were studio musicians who were available if backup was needed. They were given this name by Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones during a recording session because of the swampy land around the Shoals area. (from Wikipedia)