A UK-based manufactuer of pesticides has developed a so-called 'toxic malteser' to help tackle the scourge of invasive zebra mussels.

The razor-edged mussels have no natural predators in UK and Irish waters so spread rapidly and wreak havoc on water treatment plants and other industrial facilities, from oil rigs to ship hulls, fish farms and power stations.

But Cambridge firm Biobullets claims its pellet-sized toxin - which is deadly to zebra mussels but harmless to other marine wildlife - is the solution to the problem.

Aside from their own environmental benefits, the pellets also help avoid the old method of removing mussels by dousing them in chlorine, which is toxic in high doses.