Winged Mapleleaf

The anterior end of the Quadrula fragosa shell is slightly rounded and the posterior end of the shell is more of a square shape. The shell can range in color from a yellowish-green to light or dark brown. The inside of the shell is white, and there is sometimes iridescent coloring at one end of the shell. The diameter of a mature mussel of this species is usually about 4 inches (10.2 cm). The shells of these mussels are very thick, and unlike many other mussels, there are bumps on the shell surface running down from the hinge of the shell to the outside edges. It is the patterns of these bumps that help to distinguish the winged mapleleaf from many other mussels that look very similar in appearance.

The winged mapleleaf is found in medium to large streams and rivers. it can sometimes be found in the mud, but it is more commonly either found in gravel or sandy bottoms. The mussel does need to be in moving water in order to survive, the depth of this running water also needs to be somewhere between 0.4 and 2.0 meters. The water must be free of pollutants and clean.

The mussel filters out tiny food particles, either phytoplankton or zooplankton. The young winged mapleleafs attach themselves to the gills of a host fish for feeding and growing purposes until they reach the stage in their life cycle that they can themselves siphon in the water from the river of the stream that they are in.