Clam is a common name for several kinds of bivalve molluscs. The word is often applied only to those that are edible and live as infauna, spending most of their lives halfway buried in the sand of the seafloor or riverbeds. Clams have two shells of equal size connected by two adductor muscles and have a powerful burrowing foot. They live in both freshwater and marine environments; in salt water they prefer to burrow down into the mud and the turbidity of the water required varies with species and location; the greatest diversity of these is in North America.
A cockle is an edible marine bivalve mollusc. Although many small edible bivalves are loosely called cockles, true cockles are species in the family Cardiidae.
The Arcida is an extant order of bivalve molluscs. This order dates back to the lower Ordovician period. They are distinguished from related groups, such as the mussels, by having a straight hinge to the shells, and the adductor muscles being of equal size. The duplivincular ligament, taxodont dentition, and a shell microstructure consisting of the outer crossed lamellar and inner complex crossed lamellar layers are defining characters of this order.
The Veneridae or venerids, common name: Venus clams, are a very large family of minute to large, saltwater clams, marine bivalve molluscs. Over 500 living species of venerid bivalves are known, most of which are edible, and many of which are exploited as food sources.
Barbatia is a genus of "bearded" ark clams, marine bivalve mollusks in the family Arcidae, the ark clams.
Anadara is a genus of saltwater bivalves, ark clams, in the family Arcidae. It is also called Scapharca.
Anomiidae is a family of saltwater clams, marine bivalve molluscs related to scallops and oysters, and known as anomiids. It contains seven genera.
A bivalve shell is part of the body, the exoskeleton or shell, of a bivalve mollusk. In life, the shell of this class of mollusks is composed of two hinged parts or valves. Bivalves are very common in essentially all aquatic locales, including saltwater, brackish water, and freshwater. The shells of bivalves commonly wash up on beaches and along the edges of lakes, rivers, and streams. Bivalves by definition possess two shells or valves, a "right valve" and a "left valve", that are joined by a ligament. The two valves usually articulate with one another using structures known as "teeth" which are situated along the hinge line. In many bivalve shells, the two valves are symmetrical along the hinge line—when truly symmetrical, such an animal is said to be equivalved; if the valves vary from each other in size or shape, inequivalved. If symmetrical front-to-back, the valves are said to be equilateral, and are otherwise considered inequilateral.
Tegillarca granosa is a species of ark clam known as the blood cockle or blood clam due to the red haemoglobin liquid inside the soft tissues. It is found throughout the Indo-Pacific region from the eastern coast of South Africa northwards and eastwards to Southeast Asia, Australia, Polynesia, and up to northern Japan. It lives mainly in the intertidal zone at one to two metres water depth, burrowed down into sand or mud. Adult size is about 5 to 6 cm long and 4 to 5 cm wide.
Arca is a genus of saltwater clams in the family Arcidae, the ark clams.
Arca imbricata, or the Mossy ark clam, is a clam in the family Arcidae. It can be found along the Atlantic coast of North America, ranging from North Carolina to the West Indies, Brazil, and Bermuda.
Arca zebra, or the turkey wing ark clam, is a bivalve mollusc in the family Arcidae, the ark clams.
Barbatia cancellaria, or the Red-brown ark clam, is a clam in the family Arcidae. It can be found along the Atlantic coast of North America, ranging from Florida to the West Indies.
Barbatia domingensis, or the White miniature ark clam, was for many years a name that was commonly used for a marine clam in the family Arcidae.
Arca noae or the Noah's Ark shell is a species of bivalve mollusc in the family Arcidae. It is found in the Mediterranean Sea from low tide mark to a depth of 60 metres (200 ft).
Anadara kagoshimensis is an ark clam in the family Arcidae. It can be found in shallow water in temperate parts of the west Pacific Ocean and is cultivated in China, Japan, and Korea for human consumption. It is known as maohan in China and mogai in Japan.
Barbatia barbata is a species of ark clam, a marine bivalve mollusk in the family Arcidae, the ark clams.
Tegillarca is a genus of molluscs of the family Arcidae, the Ark clams.
Barbatia reeveana, the low-rib ark or common Reeve's ark, is a species of bivalve mollusc. It was first described to science by Alcide d'Orbigny in 1846. It seems likely that the species is named for Lovell Augustus Reeve, an eminent conchologist of the day who was mentioned in d'Orbigny's original description of the species.
