Pisidium moitessierianum

Pisidium moitessierianum
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Bivalvia
Order:	Sphaeriida
Family:	Sphaeriidae
Genus:	Pisidium
Species:	P. moitessierianum
Binomial name
Pisidium moitessierianum Paladilhe, 1866

Pisidium moitessierianum is a species of small freshwater clam. It is an aquatic bivalve mollusc in the family Sphaeriidae.

Description

This species is the smallest of the pea clams or Pisidium species, and the smallest of any freshwater bivalve, at 1.5 – 2.5 mm adult size. The shell is long-oval and oblique wedge-shaped with prominent umbos which are slightly behind the midpoint. The umbos are demarcated by a shallow furrow. The surface (periostracum) is silky, with regular concentric striae.

Drawing of the right valve external view of Pisidium moitessierianum.

Drawing of the right valve lateral view of Pisidium moitessierianum.

Drawing of the right valve internal view of Pisidium moitessierianum.

Distribution

The species is native to Europe but has been introduced to northeastern North America.

• Czech Republic – in Bohemia, in Moravia, ^[1] - endangered (EN) ^[2]
• Slovakia ^[1]
• Germany – endangered (gefährdet) ^[3]
• Nordic countries: Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden (not in Faroes, Iceland) ^[4]
• Great Britain and Ireland ^[5]

References

Notes

1. (in Czech) Horsák M., Juřičková L., Beran L., Čejka T. & Dvořák L. (2010). "Komentovaný seznam měkkýšů zjištěných ve volné přírodě České a Slovenské republiky. [Annotated list of mollusc species recorded outdoors in the Czech and Slovak Republics]". Malacologica Bohemoslovaca , Suppl. 1: 1-37. PDF.
2. Red List of the molluscs (Mollusca) of the Czech Republic http://mollusca.sav.sk/malacology/redlist.htm
3. Glöer P. & Meier-Brook C. (2003) Süsswassermollusken. DJN, pp. 134, page 109, ISBN   3-923376-02-2
4. Kuiper, J. G. J.; Økland, K. A.; Knudsen, J.; Koli, L.; von Proschwitz, T.; Valovirta, I. (1989), "Geographical distribution of the small mussels (Sphaeriidae) in North Europe (Denmark, Faroes, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden)" (PDF), Annales Zoologici Fennici, 26 (2): 73–101
5. Roy Anderson ,2005 An annotated list of the non-marine molluscs of Britain and Ireland Journal of Conchology, 38 (6): 607–637, (published 2005) .

Sources

• Zettler, M.L., Kuiper, J.G.J. 2002: Zur Verbreitung und Ökologie von Pisidium moitessierianum (Paladilhe 1866) unter besonderer Berücksichtigung von Nordostdeutschland (Mollusca: Bivalvia: Sphaeriidae). Mitteilungen der Deutschen Malakozoologischen Gesellschaft 67: 9-26

External links

• Pisidium moitessierianum at Animalbase taxonomy,short description, biology,status (threats), images
• Pisidium moitessierianum illustrated in Danmarks Fauna (Georg Mandahl-Barth)