Mytilus californianus

Like most of the prehistoric aboriginal people of California, where rocky coastline occured, the blue sea mussle was a very nutritional mainstay.  Shell mounds from Santa Barbara to Baja California commonly contain broken remains of this mollusk. Our brief visitation to a coastal Northern Baja California land development site led us to view a Kumeyaay prehistoric habitation site.
The tractor cuts passed through the 600 yard long by 200 yard wide Kumeyaay shell midden deposit exposing flaked stone tools, manos, metates, and other artifacts.
Hand grinding stones (manos) could be seen protruding from the embankment created by the tractor. The California blue sea mussle comprised most of the shell material in this Kumeyaay shell midden.  Today, this bivalve mollusk still encrusts the rocky, intertidal coastlines.  Breaking waves wash over the mussle beds.  The intertidal zone allowed the Native Americans to harvest this mollusk at low tide and periods of calm surf.  Black abalone, Haliotis cracherodii, shells were also present within the shell midden deposit as well as other mollusks shells.


The reader should note that this nutritional delicacy is still abundant on many rocky coastlines in Southern California. Mytilus californianus, the blue sea mussle, is one of the finest foods of our 'golden state'. During Caucasian migration across the Continental United States the cultural tradition of 'shellfish-eating' (clams, oysters, scallops, abalone and mussles) has been forgotten. Government agencies responsible for water quality on the coast of California have overlooked protection of the nearshore resources from pollution and blind-vision land use. The rush to 'develop' the land as an economic fuel source has jeopardized the real California lying downstream of the shopping malls, roadways, housing tracts and so-called water treatment facilities. As long as the economic wealth-engine allows the style-conscious, jet-setters (so called travel industry) access to pristine beaches in remote lands, the hidden California coast may always be jeopardized as a back yard liquid pollution dump. The protection of California's near-shore shellfish and fin-fish food resources must be a sacred trust honored by ALL persons, specially those administrators responsible to keep our nearshore waters clean from outfall contamination, automotive street run-off, marine fuel spills and industrial contamination. The coastline can restore itself if given half of a chance. Special interests, lobbying for more tollroads, harbors, airports and unrestricted housing tracts, are doing a disservice to the wealth of California as long as water borne pollutants are being piped into the ocean. As a final thought for the reader, all of us must be responsible to keep the California coastline as pristine as when the Native Americans were the only people who lived here.
Please act as your dinner has come from the coastline. Preserve the Blue Sea Mussle of the California Coast as a pollution-free viable food source for all Californians today.
Image of Mytilus californianus, blue sea mussle as food.

Shellfish gathering has been a nutritional way aboriginal people have survived for millenia on the coast of California. The blue mussle is an abundant marine organism. Which can be readily harvested at low tide for food. Let's keep this resource and other California shellfish available for everyone. Shellfish are a nutritional golden delicacy from the coastline of our GOLDEN STATE.  

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