It is harvested for food but is also known to harbor toxins [citation needed] and cause damage to submerged structures such as drainage pipes.

The smooth periostracum is dark green, becoming increasingly brownish towards its point of attachment (umbo), where it is lighter.

[2] The mussel inhabits estuarine habitats and is found in densities as high as 35,000 individuals per square meter on any submerged marine object.

Growth is influenced by the availability of food, temperature, water movement,[4] the mussel's age, and caging.

Cage culturing can prevent entry of predators and barnacles increases marketability but slows down the mussel's growth rate.

[9] This mussel is also notorious for clogging water pipes used by industrial complexes and fouling marine equipment.

It has fouled the intake condenser tunnels of power plants in India and Florida and navigational buoys in China where their biomass has grown to up to 72 kilograms per square metre (15 lb/sq ft).

[10] Heat treatment is also being considered as an alternative to chlorination due to the safety and environmental concerns raised by the latter method.

In Thai cuisine, it is popularly baked in a pot with basil and kaffir lime leaves with lemongrass stems, eaten with a spicy and sour dipping sauce, just like other seafood dishes.