zebra-musselhttp://www.oed.com/dictionary/zebra-mussel_n%3Ftab%3Dmeaning_and_usezebra mussel, n.
Revised 2018

zebra musselnoun

  1. 1866–
    A small freshwater mussel with a striped pattern on the shell, Dreissena polymorpha (family Dreissenidae), native to the Black Sea and Caspian Sea but now considered an invasive species in many countries.
    1. 1866
      The Zebra Mussel made its appearance in the neighbourhood of Gloucester a few years after the opening of the Gloucester and Berkeley Canal.
      R. Tate, Plain & Easy Account Mollusks of Great Britain ii. 23
    2. 1899
      The zebra mussel is a native of the rivers of Southern Russia.
      Speaker 18 February 204/1
    3. 1938
      Larger organisms, such as..the zebra mussel, may find their way into exposed water on the feet of birds.
      Lancet 5 February 357/1
    4. 1959
      The organism most likely to be mistaken for a rotifer is the planktonic larva of Dreissena , the Zebra Mussel.
      T. T. Macan, Guide to Freshwater Invertebrate Animals 10
    5. 2013
      Thames Water is removing hundreds of tons of zebra mussels from the 8ft wide tunnels.
      Daily Telegraph 16 September 35/5

Originally published as part of the entry for zebra, n.

zebra mussel, n. was revised in June 2018.

zebra mussel, n. was last modified in July 2023.