''Cristaria plicata'', the cockscomb pearl mussel, is a

freshwater mussel Freshwater bivalves are one kind of freshwater mollusc, along with freshwater snails. They are bivalves that live in fresh water as opposed to salt water, which is the main habitat type for bivalves. The majority of species of bivalve molluscs ...

, an aquatic

bivalve Bivalvia (), in previous centuries referred to as the Lamellibranchiata and Pelecypoda, is a class of marine and freshwater molluscs that have laterally compressed bodies enclosed by a shell consisting of two hinged parts. As a group, biv ...

mollusk Mollusca is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda, the members of which are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 85,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized. The number of fossil species is es ...

in the family

Unionidae The Unionidae are a family of freshwater mussels, the largest in the order Unionida, the bivalve molluscs sometimes known as river mussels, or simply as unionids. The range of distribution for this family is world-wide. It is at its most dive ...

Distribution

This species is native to northeast Asia and now also present in parts of southeast Asia. This large mussel is listed as endangered in South Korea.

Biology

The

mitochondrial genome Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA or mDNA) is the DNA located in mitochondria, cellular organelles within eukaryotic cells that convert chemical energy from food into a form that cells can use, such as adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Mitochondrial D ...

of this species was sequenced in 2011 or 2012.

Human uses

In China, this species is significant as "one of the most important freshwater mussels for pearl production in the country." It is used for medicinal purposes.

References

* Bogan, A. (2013). "FADA Bivalvia: World checklist of Freshwater Bivalvia Species" (version Jan 2013). In: ''Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life,'' 11 March 2013 (Roskov, Y.et al., eds). Online: www.catalogueoflife.org/col/. Species 2000: Reading, UK. Unionidae Bivalves and humans {{Unionidae-stub