Spat are very young shellfish, and the raw material of mussel farms. Mussel spat develop from a floating larval stage. The larvae attach themselves to seaweed or ropes and develop into miniature shellfish 0.3 mm long – about the width of a needle tip. They move from site to site until they are 0.6 mm in length, when they attach themselves permanently to a settlement site. Green-lipped mussel spat, pictured here, are oval with brown zigzag markings on the shell.
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NIWA – National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research
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