Mytilidae (mussels) are a family of marine bivalves with characteristically elongated, wedge- or triangular-shaped shells, often bearing prominent concentric growth lines. They live attached by byssal threads to hard substrates such as rocks, other shells, or artificial surfaces, where they frequently form dense beds of thousands of tightly packed individuals. They are suspension feeders, filtering food from the water. The family appears in the Devonian and persists to the present day; familiar examples include modern edible mussels (Mytilus, Modiolus) and numerous fossil genera common in the Jurassic strata of northern England.
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