''Hiatella'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of small saltwater clams, 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 ...

molluscs 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

Hiatellidae Hiatellidae is a taxonomic family of saltwater clams, marine bivalve molluscs. This family is placed in the order Adapedonta Adapedonta is an order of bivalves belonging to the class Bivalvia Bivalvia () or bivalves, in previous cent ...

Ecology

These bivalves are stationary

suspension feeder Filter feeders are aquatic animals that acquire nutrients by feeding on organic matters, food particles or smaller organisms (bacteria, microalgae and zooplanktons) suspended in water, typically by having the water pass over or through a spec ...

s. Some species bore into rock for shelter, others also live in rock but do not bore, instead they nestle in holes created by other organisms, or in other crevices. They may also live nestled within the holdfasts of

kelp Kelps are large brown algae or seaweeds that make up the order (biology), order Laminariales. There are about 30 different genus, genera. Despite its appearance and use of photosynthesis in chloroplasts, kelp is technically not a plant but a str ...

s, within other organisms such as sponges, or partly buried in a sandy sediment.

Species

The number of species in the genus is unclear, and their unequivocal identification can be difficult. The following species are listed in MolluscaBase/

WoRMS The World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) is a taxonomic database that aims to provide an authoritative and comprehensive catalogue and list of names of marine organisms. Content The content of the registry is edited and maintained by scien ...

(2015): * '' Hiatella antarctica'' (Philippi, 1845) * '' Hiatella arctica'' (

Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné,#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. was a Swedish biologist and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the modern system of naming o ...

, 1767) (= ''Hiatella striata'' (Fleuriau, 1802) = ''Hiatella pholadis'' (

, 1771)) * '' Hiatella arenacea'' (E.A. Smith, 1910) * '' Hiatella australis'' (Lamarck, 1818) * '' Hiatella azaria'' Dall, 1881 * '' Hiatella rugosa'' (

, 1767) (= ''Hiatella gallicana'' (Lamarck, 1818)) * '' Hiatella glaciana'' * '' Hiatella pholadis'' * '' Hiatella striata'' Natural History - Mollusca - Saxicava

By molecular data, at least 13 different species of ''Hiatella'' were distinguished, but the correspondence between those taxa and the formal species names was not resolved.Laakkonen, Hanna; Strelkov, Petr; Väinölä, Risto (2015
Molecular lineage diversity and inter-oceanic biogeographical history in ''Hiatella'' (Mollusca, Bivalvia)
''

Zoologica Scripta ''Zoologica Scripta'' is a bimonthly peer-reviewed scientific journal on systematic zoology, published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters and the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. It was established in 197 ...

'' 44: 383-402. DOI:10.1111/zsc.12105

References

Hiatellidae Bivalve genera Taxa named by Louis Augustin Guillaume Bosc {{bivalve-stub