This allows Olympia Oysters to technically have the possibility to fertilize its own egg. One characteristic that is unique to Olympia oysters is that they have two sexes, their reproductive organs contain both eggs and sperm. At the same time, two kidneys, located on the underside of the muscle, remove waste products from the blood. A small, three-chambered heart, lying under the adductor muscle, pumps colorless blood to all parts of the body. In addition to their gills, oysters can also exchange gases across their mantle, which is lined with many small, thin-walled blood vessels. Suspended plankton and particles are trapped in the mucus of a gill, and from there are transported to the mouth, where they are eaten, digested and expelled as faeces or pseudofaeces. Oysters are filter feeders, drawing water in over their gills through the beating of cilia. The scar of the adductor muscle is not much darker then the white to olive green interior of the valves. shells may have purplish brown or yellow stripes. The exterior of the shell has no organic coating, or periostracum, and varies from white to a black purple. Free-growing oysters have oval to elongated shells. Shells growing on substrates will conform in respect to substrate. Upper and Lower valves are usually the same size. Lower (left) valve is concave and shallow. Upper (right) valve is flat and fits into the raised area of the opposite valve. Average length ranges from 6-8cm with a width of 4-6cm.
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