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Deep digger
The Sand gaper starts its life
as a larva, hovering rather than swimming in the water. After a few
weeks it falls to the bottom and starts a bottom living existence. There,
the gaper digs
down into the bottom sediment and is more or less stationary the rest
of its life. The larger and older the gaper is, the deeper it lives in
the sediment. At one year it is found at between 5-10 cm down, and at
ten years it can as far down as about 40 cm. The young mussels run the
risk of being fish food, while the larger and deeper living mussels are
almost inaccessible to predators and do not freeze to death, even during
harsh winters. They can be as old as 10-12 years.
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