Around Ancona, mussels that reproduce naturally and live attached to underwater rocks off the Conero coast are known as “moscioli”. The local trattorias made them famous in the 1950s, and the mollusks began to be harvested on a large scale by small fishing boats with the help of divers. During the following two decades, there were around 80 active boats along the Conero coast, 30 of which belonged to the Portonovo fishing cooperative. Eventually, difficulties in harvesting the mussels and competition from farmed mollusks led to a steep fall in production. The number of divers willing to do this type of work also fell steeply.