| Pharus legumen | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Bivalvia |
| Order: | Adapedonta |
| Family: | Pharidae |
| Genus: | Pharus |
| Species: | P. legumen |
| Binomial name | |
| Pharus legumen (Linnaeus, 1758) | |
Pharus legumen (also known as the bean razor clam or the bean solen), is a species of bivalve mollusc commonly found burrowed in the sand on lower shores and in the shallow sublittoral. [1] [2] [3] [4]
Pharus legumen is up to 130mm long and has a characteristic bean-shaped shell. The shell colour ranges from white to light brown and it displays a light olive to yellow periostracum. The right valve has a single cardinal tooth and a short peg-like posterior lateral tooth, whereas the left valve has two elongated and closely spaced cardinal teeth and a single posterior lateral tooth. [4]
Pharus legumen is commonly found in the English Channel, in the north-east Atlantic and in the Mediterranean Sea. [5]
Pharus legumen is similar to other species of razor clam of the genus Ensis, Phaxas and Solen. The key feature to identify it is the presence of a ligament in the middle third of the shell. [4]
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.
Ensis is a genus of medium-sized edible saltwater clams, littoral bivalve molluscs in the family Pharidae. Ensis, or razor clams, are known in much of Scotland as spoots, for the spouts of water they eject while burrowing into the sand, when visible at low tide. This term may also colloquially include members of the genus Solen. Ensis magnus are known as bendies due to their slightly curved shell.
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.
Mactridae, common name the trough shells or duck clams, is a family of saltwater clams, marine bivalve mollusks in the order Venerida.
The razor shell, Ensis magnus, also called razor clam, razor fish or spoot (colloquially), is a bivalve of the family Pharidae. It is found on sandy beaches in Canada and northern Europe.
Solenidae, commonly called "razor shells", is a family of marine bivalve molluscs in the unassigned Euheterodonta.
The pod razor is a coastal bivalve of European waters. It is edible and has been fished commercially, especially in Portugal, Spain, Ireland and Scotland.
Placunidae, also known as windowpane oysters, windowpane shells, and Capiz shells, are a taxonomic family of saltwater clams, marine bivalve mollusks which are related to oysters and scallops.
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.
The grooved carpet shell, or Palourde clam, Ruditapes decussatus, or Venerupis decussatus, is a clam in the family Veneridae. It is distributed worldwide and due to its ecological and economic interest has been proposed as a bioindicator.
Mya truncata, common name the blunt gaper or truncate softshell, is a species of edible saltwater clam, a marine bivalve mollusk in the family Myidae.
Hysteroconcha dione or the elegant Venus clam, formerly known as Venus dione, is a species of bivalve mollusc in the family Veneridae, the Venus clams.
Tellimya ferruginosa is a species of small marine bivalve mollusc in the family Lasaeidae. It is found on the eastern side of the Atlantic Ocean.
Phaxas pellucidus, the transparent razor shell, is a species of marine bivalve mollusc in the family Pharidae. It is found buried in the seabed in coastal waters of northwest Europe, often in great numbers.
Lutraria is a genus of medium-sized marine bivalve mollusks or clams, commonly known as otter shells.
Lutraria lutraria is a species of large marine bivalve mollusc in the family Mactridae. Its common names include the otter shell and the common otter shell. It occurs in coastal regions of the north east Atlantic Ocean where it lives buried in the sand.
Venerupis decussata is a marine bivalve mollusc in the family Veneridae, commonly known as the cross-cut carpet shell.
Hinge teeth are part of the anatomical structure of the inner surface of a bivalve shell, i.e. the shell of a bivalve mollusk. Bivalves by definition have two valves, which are joined together by a strong and flexible ligament situated on the hinge line at the dorsal edge of the shell. In life, the shell needs to be able to open slightly to allow the foot and siphons to protrude, and then close again, without the valves moving out of alignment with one another. To make this possible, in most cases the two valves are articulated using an arrangement of structures known as hinge teeth. Like the ligament, the hinge teeth are also situated along the hinge line of the shell, in most cases.
Solecurtus strigilatus, also known as the rosy razor clam, is a species of saltwater clam, a marine bivalve mollusc in the family Solecurtidae. This mollusc is a suspension feeder and can burrow with great rapidity to escape predators. It is an unusual bivalve in that its shell valves are too small to contain all the soft tissue, and the animal is unable to retreat into its shell.
Pharus is a genus of medium-sized saltwater clams, littoral bivalve molluscs in the family Pharidae.