[2] The ribbed mussel occurs in the coastal waters of salt marsh habitats from the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence in eastern Canada, south along the western Atlantic coast to Florida.

[1] Ribbed mussels live in the intertidal zone, attached to hard surfaces or embedded in sediment with the help of their byssal threads.

In higher tidal zones, ribbed mussels do not grow to full potential and there are few out there; however, they tend to be live long and have a better chance of survival.

[7] They reproduce once per year in Connecticut[7] and South Carolina,[8] however in an introduced population in Venezuela two spawning peaks have been observed.

[14] Ribbed mussels and other shellfish are able to store nutrients in the bodies and shells, through a process that may also remove toxins from the environment,[15] and they can be used as bioindicators for certain pollutants like coliform bacteria.

[17] Native Americans near the Jamestown settlement manufactured shell beads that were called "rawrenock" in the local Powhatan language.

The production process involved grinding broken ribbed mussel shells into disk-shaped beads and drilling a central hole to string the jewelry with.