''Glycymeris nummaria'' is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

of saltwater clam, a marine

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 ...

Glycymerididae Glycymerididae, often misspelled as Glycymeridae, common names dog cockles or bittersweets, is a worldwide Family (biology), family of salt water clams, Marine (ocean), marine bivalve mollusks in the order Arcida. They are related to the ark clam ...

, the bittersweet clams.

Synonyms

* ''Arca insubrica'' Brocchi, 1814 * ''Arca nummaria'' Linnaeus, 1758 * ''Glycymeris insubrica'' (Brocchi, 1814) * ''Glycymeris violacescens'' (Lamarck, 1819) * ''Pectunculus cor'' Lamarck, 1805 * ''Pectunculus nudicardo'' Lamarck, 1819 * ''Pectunculus obliquatus'' Rayneval & Ponzi, 1854 * ''Pectunculus pilosellus'' Risso, 1826 * ''Pectunculus purpurascens'' M' Andrew, 1854 * ''Pectunculus reticulatus'' Risso, 1826 * ''Pectunculus transversus'' Lamarck, 1819 * ''Pectunculus zonalis'' Lamarck, 1819

Description

File:Glycymeris nummaria 04.jpg, Fossil (Quaternary) File:Glycymeris nummaria 03.jpg, Fossil (Pliocene)

''Glycymeris nummaria'' var. ''insubrica''
Right and left valve of the same specimen: File:Glycymeris nummaria 05.jpg, Right valve File:Glycymeris nummaria 06.jpg, Left valve

The shell of an adult ''Glycymeris nummaria'' can be as large as . It is quite thick, almost circular in shape, with a sculpture of radiating striae and fine concentric lines. The surface is dull and may be dark or pale brown, but also whitish-yellowish. Inside of the shell is glossy, white or pale yellow, often with irregular brown markings.

Distribution and habitat

This species is widespread from Norway to the Mediterranean Sea. It lives in sandy-muddy gravels offshore to depths of about .

References

*Melita Peharda, Marija Crnčević, Ivana Bušelić, Chris A. Richardson and Daria Ezgeta-Balić
Growth And Longevity of Glycymeris nummaria (Linnaeus, 1758) from the Eastern Adriatic, Croatia

External links

* Najdek M., Ezgeta-Balić D., Blažina M., Crnčević M. & Peharda M. (2016). "Potential food sources of ''Glycymeris nummaria'' (Mollusca: Bivalvia) during the annual cycleindicated by fatty acid analysis". ''

Scientia Marina ''Scientia Marina'', formerly ''Investigación Pesquera'', is a peer-reviewed academic journal on marine research published by Institut de Ciències del Mar de Barcelona ( CSIC) since 1955. The journal is abstracted and indexed in the Science Cit ...

'' 80(1): 123-129. . nummaria Bivalves described in 1758 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Molluscs of the Mediterranean Sea {{bivalve-stub