| Feather oysters | |
|---|---|
 | |
| A live individual of Pteria hirundo | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Bivalvia |
| Order: | Pteriida |
| Superfamily: | Pterioidea |
| Family: | Pteriidae Gray, 1847 |
| Genera | |
See text | |
Pteriidae, also called the feather oysters, is a family of medium-sized to large saltwater clams. They are pearl oysters, marine bivalve molluscs in the order Pteriida. [1]
Some of the species in this family are important economically as the source of saltwater pearls.
Genera in the family Pteriidae include:
A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft tissue of a living shelled mollusk or another animal, typically found in freshwater rivers and ponds, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is composed of calcium carbonate in minute crystalline form, which has deposited in concentric layers. The ideal pearl is perfectly round and smooth, but many other shapes, known as baroque pearls, can occur. The finest quality of natural pearls have been highly valued as gemstones and objects of beauty for many centuries. Because of this, pearl has become a metaphor for something rare, fine, admirable and valuable.
The Ostreidae, the true oysters, include most species of molluscs commonly consumed as oysters. Pearl oysters are not true oysters, and belong to the order Pteriida.
Pinctada is a genus of saltwater oysters, marine bivalve mollusks in the family Pteriidae, the pearl oysters. These oysters have a strong inner shell layer composed of nacre, also known as "mother of pearl".
Tridacna is a genus of large saltwater clams, marine bivalve molluscs in the subfamily Tridacninae, the giant clams. They have heavy shells, fluted with 4 to 6 folds. The mantle is brightly coloured. They inhabit shallow waters of coral reefs in warm seas of the Indo-Pacific region. These clams are popular in marine aquaria, and in some areas, such as the Philippines, members of the genus are farmed for the marine aquarium trade. They live in symbiosis with photosynthetic algae (zooxanthellae). Some species are eaten by humans.
The Pteriida are an order of large and medium-sized marine bivalve mollusks. It includes five families, among them the Pteriidae.
The Pteriomorphia comprise a subclass of saltwater clams, marine bivalve molluscs. It contains several major orders, including the Arcida, Ostreida, Pectinida, Limida, Mytilida, and Pteriida. It also contains some extinct and probably basal families, such as the Evyanidae, Colpomyidae, Bakevelliidae, Cassianellidae, and Lithiotidae.
Isognomon is a genus of marine bivalve mollusks which is related to the pearl oysters.
Pinctada albina is a species of pearl oyster of the genus Pinctada, known as the sharks bay shell. Another common name is the Arafura shell. It is called the "Amami gai" in Japan.
Pinctada radiata, commonly known as the Atlantic pearl-oyster or the Gulf pearl oyster is a species of pearl oyster distributed throughout the Indo-Pacific. Its range extends as far north as Japan and as far south as the Australian state of Victoria.
Pteria is a genus of molluscs in the family Pteriidae. The species of the genus are sometimes referred to as wing-oysters or winged oysters.
Pteria colymbus, the Atlantic winged oyster, is a species of bivalve mollusc in the family Pteriidae. It can be found along the Atlantic coast of North America, ranging from North Carolina to Bermuda and Brazil.
Pteria sterna, commonly known as the rainbow-lipped pearl oyster or the Pacific wing-oyster, is a species of marine bivalve mollusk in the family Pteriidae, the pearl oysters. This oyster can be found in shallow water along the tropical and subtropical Pacific coast of America, its range including Baja California, Mexico and northern Peru.
Pinctada mazatlanica is a species of tropical marine bivalve mollusc in the family Pteriidae, the pearl oysters. It is known by the English common names pearl oyster, Mazatlan pearl oyster, and Panama pearl oyster. Spanish common names include madre perla, and ostra perlifera panameña. This mollusc was first described to science in 1856 by conchologist Sylvannus Charles Thorp Hanley. Pinctada mazatlanica produces gem-quality pearls and was the basis of a pearling industry in the Gulf of California for centuries.
Pteria penguin, commonly known as the penguin's wing oyster, is a species of marine bivalve mollusc in the family Pteriidae, the pearl oysters. It is native to the western and central Indo-Pacific region and is used for the production of cultured pearls. The generic name comes from Greek πτερον (pteron) meaning wing.
Pinctada margaritifera, commonly known as the black-lip pearl oyster, is a species of pearl oyster, a saltwater mollusk, a marine bivalve mollusk in the family Pteriidae. This species is common in the Indo-Pacific within tropical coral reefs.
Pinctada longisquamosa, sometimes called scaly pearl osters, are a small species of pearl oyster found in the western Atlantic. They are distinguished by unique prismatic shell structures which protrude from the outer shell.
Pterioidea is a superfamily of epifaunal marine bivalves mostly inhabiting continental shelf regions of tropical and subtropical oceans. The superfamily includes the economically-important saltwater pearl oysters as well as the oddly shaped hammer oysters. A number of species have found use as model organisms in the fields of medicine and science.
Crenatula is a genus in the family Pteriidae.