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The intertidal mussel Mytilus californianus is a critical foundation species that is exposed to fluctuations in the environment along tidal- and wave-exposure gradients. We investigated feeding and digestion in mussels under laboratory conditions and across environmental gradients in the field. We assessed whether mussels adopt a rate-maximization (higher ingestion and lower assimilation) or a yield-maximization acquisition (lower ingestion and higher assimilation) strategy under laboratory conditions by measuring feeding physiology and digestive enzyme activities. We used digestive enzyme activity to define resource acquisition strategies in laboratory studies, then measured digestive enzyme activities in three microhabitats at the extreme ends of the tidal- and wave-exposure gradients within a stretch of shore (