Mussels safe to eat?

[Supernal]

On a recent trip to Long Island, New York, I noticed mussels growing on the jettys there. I wondered if they were safe to eat. I was told by locals that they never ate them, but used them for fish bait. I still wonder, though.

 

[kjpwong]

probably not, if they were ok, locals would have already feed on them.
good mussels are sooooooooo gooooooood..........mmmmmmm........seafood.........

 

[genxweb]

I would say just make sure they are not sick and see if there are any shellfish warnings in that area. Personaly I would be a little worried of the ones on a peer as it close to shore and between runoffs, humans, boats and trash they may have picked up some unwated contamination.

 

[Wayward Son]

We used to dive for them in Turkey, ate them all the time. Location is important. We only took ones growing on rocks & such, never metal. I was told that the ones that grew on iron or steel structures were not safe to eat.

I have no idea if they'd be safe where you're talking about or not, but in general I'd feel better about it if they were out in open water.

 

[Rick Murchison]

You haven't really lived until you've tried to eat a shellfish growing on a creosote piling.
Seriously, though, I'd be suspicious of shellfish taken so close to so much human activity. Not knowing the particulars of the immediate area I can't say offhand, but in general when contemplating the harvest of shellfish on jetties, piers & other places close to developed areas, at a minimum have a fecal coliform count done on a sample before eating 'em.
Rick

 

[drbill]

Jean-Michel Cousteau once told me that he never ate "filterers." Now that's saying something for a French man since mussels seem to be a "delicacy" there. He said he doesn't eat filtering organs (kidneys, liver) either.

It was easy to agree with the latter, but I must admit that I am occasionally tempted by mussels and clams, especially if they come from relatively clean waters. Yum!

 

[XJae]

The Blue Mussel is the edible one. It grows to 4". The Horse Mussel looks similar but grows to 6" and is inedible. The Ribbed Mussel (has a ribbed shell), probably the one you're talking about, is found inshore and is inedible. Personally I would never eat any that were from inshore shallow waters because of pollutants. My buddies and I routinely feast on Blues that we grab off the Algol, a wreck 16 miles out and over 100' deep.

 

[dpbishop]

The old adage is "don't eat mussels in a month with an 'r' in it. I have made mussel stews with Baja California mussels in the summer with no ill effects.

 

[XJae]

isn't that oysters?

 

[Bob3]

Hmmm... isn't that backwards? (only eat 'em in months with an R in it)
Warmer months have the oysters spawning, not to mention algae blooms that take place in the warmer months.