Mussel box - ZAWA-Evolved/ZAWA GitHub Wiki

Mussel box

The mussel box is an item used to breed shellfish as animal feed.

Mussel boxes can be stacked and placed next to each other while functioning as normal. They are one of the first steps of a sustainable zoo food chain.

Mussel boxes are almost entirely necessary to feed shellfish animals, as shellfish are otherwise rare items obtained by breaking certain blocks. Many ambient animals also use shellfish to breed.

The mussel box has an insect-farming counterpart called the bug box.

One mussel box can be crafted with 3x Gravel, 2x Smooth Stone Slab, 2x Light Blue Concrete and 1x Water Bucket. They are slightly more costly to craft than the [bug box]], but [shellfish-eating animals are generally considered more valuable.

Ingredients Crafting Recipe
Gravel +Smooth Stone Slab +Light Blue Concrete +Water Bucket

Shellfish

Zookeepers will need to find a starting stock of shellfish to start a mussel box farm. There are three options, which are all found in different locations and fed different items.

  • Clams can be found by breaking cobblestone rock hides. They need to be fed kelp.
  • Mussels can be found by breaking blackstone rock hides. They need to be fed kelp.
  • Shrimp can be found by breaking sandstone rock hides. They need to be fed wheat seeds.

Farming

Once a starting shellfish is found, the player can place shellfish in the first slot and their appropriate feed items in the second slot of the mussel box. One shellfish item is enough for up to eight "breeding attempts," as long as eight feed items are provided.

The first shellfish item will be consumed immediately, and you'll know the process has begun. This is a slow process; while feed items exist, one attempt to create a new shellfish happens every 1000 ticks. There is a 50% chance of generating a new shellfish for each attempt.

Removing feed items during this process will immediately halt any breeding and waste precious time! However, the mussel box does remember if a shellfish item has been consumed and will only stay "active" for its total of 8000 ticks.

The mussel box has 5 slots to "breed" shellfish into. Every slot in the mussel box can store a whole stack (64) of corresponding items.