''Meretrix'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

of edible saltwater clams,

marine Marine is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the sea or ocean. Marine or marines may refer to: Ocean * Maritime (disambiguation) * Marine art * Marine biology * Marine debris * Marine habitats * Marine life * Marine pollution Military * ...

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 ...

molluscs in the family

Veneridae The Veneridae or venerids, common name: Venus clams, are a very large family of minute to large, saltwater clams, marine bivalve molluscs. Over 500 living species of venerid bivalves are known, most of which are edible, and many of which are ...

, the Venus clams. They appeared in the fossil record in the Cenomanian age.

Species

Species in the genus ''Meretrix'' include:''Meretrix''
at

Fossilworks Fossilworks is a portal which provides query, download, and analysis tools to facilitate access to the Paleobiology Database, a large relational database assembled by hundreds of paleontologists from around the world. History Fossilworks was cre ...

.org * '' Meretrix lamarckii'' * ''

Meretrix meretrix Prostitution in ancient Rome was legal and licensed. In ancient Rome, even Roman men of the highest social status were free to engage prostitutes of either sex without incurring moral disapproval, as long as they demonstrated self-control and m ...

'' * ''

Meretrix lusoria ''Meretrix lusoria'', the hamaguri, Asian hard clam or common Orient clam, is a species of saltwater clam, a marine bivalve mollusk in the family Veneridae, the Venus clams. This species is native to Asia, found along water beds and the coasta ...

'' * ''

Meretrix lyrata ''Meretrix lyrata'', the lyrate Asiatic hard clam, also known simply as the hard clam ( vi, Nghêu Bến Tre), is an edible saltwater clam, a marine (ocean), marine bivalve mollusc in the family Veneridae, the Venus clams. This species occurs a ...

'' * '' Meretrix taiwanica'' * ''†

Meretrix chalcedonica Prostitution in ancient Rome was legal and licensed. In ancient Rome, even Roman men of the highest social status were free to engage prostitutes of either sex without incurring moral disapproval, as long as they demonstrated self-control and m ...

'', early Danian

Lefipán Formation The Lefipán Formation is a Maastrichtian to Danian, straddling the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary, geologic formation of the Cañadón Asfalto Basin in Chubut Province, Patagonia, Argentina. The up to thick stratigraphic unit comprises mudstone ...

Cañadón Asfalto Basin The Cañadón Asfalto Basin ( es, Cuenca de Cañadón Asfalto) is an irregularly shaped sedimentary basin located in north-central Patagonia, Argentina. The basin stretches from and partly covers the North Patagonian Massif in the north, a high for ...

, ArgentinaGoin et al., 2006, p.506 * ''†

Meretrix dalli Prostitution in ancient Rome was legal and licensed. In ancient Rome, even Roman men of the highest social status were free to engage prostitutes of either sex without incurring moral disapproval, as long as they demonstrated self-control and m ...

'',

Paleocene The Paleocene, ( ) or Palaeocene, is a geological epoch that lasted from about 66 to 56 million years ago (mya). It is the first epoch of the Paleogene Period in the modern Cenozoic Era. The name is a combination of the Ancient Greek ''pal ...

Martinez Formation The Martinez Formation is an Eocene Epoch geologic formation in California. Geology The formation regionally overlies the Chico Formation and regionally underlies the Tejon Formation or the Ione Formation. It is exposed in the Clevelin Hill ...

of California * ''†

Meretrix faba Prostitution in ancient Rome was legal and licensed. In ancient Rome, even Roman men of the highest social status were free to engage prostitutes of either sex without incurring moral disapproval, as long as they demonstrated self-control and m ...

'', Cenomanian Khatiyah Formation of the United Arab EmiratesRas al Khaimah, UAE
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.org * ''†

Meretrix hikoshimensis Prostitution in ancient Rome was legal and licensed. In ancient Rome, even Roman men of the highest social status were free to engage prostitutes of either sex without incurring moral disapproval, as long as they demonstrated self-control and m ...

'',

Oligocene The Oligocene ( ) is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 33.9 million to 23 million years before the present ( to ). As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the epoch are well identified but ...

Ashiya Group Ashiya may refer to: * Ashiya, Hyōgo, Japan ** Ashiya University, Hyōgo * Ashiya, Fukuoka, Japan * Ashiya, a subcaste of Charans from Rajasthan, India * Mizuki Ashiya This is a list of characters from the manga and drama series, ''Hana-Kimi'' ...

of Japan * ''† Meretrix hornii'', Paleocene to

Eocene The Eocene ( ) Epoch is a geological epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (mya). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the modern Cenozoic Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes from the Ancient Greek (''ēṓs'', " ...

California * ''† Meretrix indica'', Paleocene Hangu Shales of Pakistan * ''† Meretrix negritosensis'',

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and means "less recent" ...

Zorritos Formation of Peru * ''† Meretrix nuttalliopsis'', Eocene Boca de Serpiente Formation of Trinidad and Tobago * ''† Meretrix persica'', Miocene of Iran and India * ''† Meretrix shantii'', Eocene Umm al-Rua'us Formation of Saudi Arabia * ''† Meretrix stantoni'', Paleocene California * ''† Meretrix subimpressa'', Eocene Trinidad and Tobago and Maryland * ''† Meretrix uvasana'', Paleocene to Eocene California

Species

References

Bibliography

Further reading