''Arcinella arcinella'', or the Caribbean spiny jewel box clam, spiny jewel box clam, or spiny jewel box, is a species of
bivalve
Bivalvia () or bivalves, in previous centuries referred to as the Lamellibranchiata and Pelecypoda, is a class (biology), class of aquatic animal, aquatic molluscs (marine and freshwater) that have laterally compressed soft bodies enclosed b ...
mollusc
Mollusca is a phylum of protostome, protostomic invertebrate animals, whose members are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 76,000 extant taxon, extant species of molluscs are recognized, making it the second-largest animal phylum ...
in the
family
Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...
Chamidae
Chamidae, common name the jewel boxes or jewel box clams, is a family of marine bivalve mollusks in the order Venerida.Abbott, R.T. & Morris, P.A. ''A Field Guide to Shells: Atlantic and Gulf Coasts and the West Indies.'' New York: Houghton Mif ...
.
[Abbott, R.T. & Morris, P.A. ''A Field Guide to Shells: Atlantic and Gulf Coasts and the West Indies.'' New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1995. 55.][
]
Description
''Arcinella arcinella'' has a shell reaching a size of about 55 mm. The shells of this common Caribbean species are pale brown to yellowish white in color with about 20 rows of spines. The interior is white. These molluscs are suspension filter feeders.
Right and left valve of the same specimen:
File:Arcinella arcinella 01.jpg, Right valve
File:Arcinella arcinella 02.jpg, Left valve
Distribution
This species can be found in Caribbean waters, ranging from the West Indies
The West Indies is an island subregion of the Americas, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, which comprises 13 independent island country, island countries and 19 dependent territory, dependencies in thr ...
to South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...
. It is present at a depth from 2 to 73 m.
References
External links
Encyclopedia of life
Malacolog
Chamidae
Molluscs of the Atlantic Ocean
Molluscs described in 1767
Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus
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