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Irus irus

Submitted by Steve Wilkinson on Sat, 05/12/2009 22:15
Distribution and status

Common

Recorded from the south and west of the British Isles and south to the Iberian Peninsula and into the Mediterranean and Black Sea.

Ecology and behaviour

Lives in holes in limestone (often previously occupied by other species) or in crevices in Laminaria holdfasts. Feeds by filtering phytoplankton from the water.

Similar species
  • Hiatella arctica [?]
Key identification features
  • No lateral teeth and three cardinal teeth in right valve [check image?]
  • Raised frill like concentric sculpture on the valve surface
  • Pallial sinus triangular and short
Taxon version key
[NBNSYS0000183059]
Sort order
11020
Taxonomic group
Marine bivalve
  • Read more about Irus irus

Brittle shell up to about 2.5cm in length. Dirty white or fawn in colour. Inside white or cream often with purple stain. The degree of distortion and sculpture of the shell depends on how tightly the specimen was wedged in the cavity in grew in. The frill like concentric ridges can be very prominent.

Gastrana fragilis

Submitted by Steve Wilkinson on Sat, 05/12/2009 22:15
Distribution and status

RareNorwegian Sea and Baltic to the Iberian Peninsula and into the Mediterranean and Black Sea.

Ecology and behaviour

Burrows in sand

Key identification features
  • Lower margin of pallial sinus not entirely confluent with pallial line
Taxon version key
[NBNSYS0000182198]
Sort order
10710
Taxonomic group
Marine bivalve
  • Read more about Gastrana fragilis

Brittle shell up to about 5 cm in length. Dirty white in colour. Shell surface is rough sculptured with irregular concentric ridges and fine radiating lines. Cruciform muscle scars sometimes clear. Deep pallial sinus which is partially confluent with the pallial line.

Galeomma turtoni

Submitted by Steve Wilkinson on Sat, 05/12/2009 22:15
Ecology and behaviour

Known to live either attached by byssus threads or in a free state.

Key identification features
  • The hinge does not possess teeth
  • The surface is sculptured with radiating ribs and concentric lines giving it a rough appearance
Taxon version key
[NBNSYS0000182177]
Sort order
9930
Taxonomic group
Marine bivalve
  • Read more about Galeomma turtoni

Brittle shell up to 1.5cm in length. The inside of the shell is white and the outside is white or light brown. The surface of the shell is sculptured with radiating ribs and concentric lines. The margin of the shell is crenulated.

Ervilia castanea

Submitted by Steve Wilkinson on Sat, 05/12/2009 22:15
Key identification features
  • Internal ligament
  • Cardinal teeth do not form a V shaped projection
  • Lateral teeth present
Taxon version key
[NBNSYS0000181779]
Sort order
10850
Taxonomic group
Marine bivalve
  • Read more about Ervilia castanea

Solid shell up to about 1.5cm in length. Glossy shell, red-chestnut brown in colour often with rays or paler patches. Inside similar colour but brighter. Shell surface sculptured with concentric lines. Pallial sinus almost reaches the midline and is partially confluent with the pallial line.

Cuspidaria rostrata

Submitted by Steve Wilkinson on Sat, 05/12/2009 22:15
Distribution and status

Rare. Distributed from the north of Norway to the Mediterranean.

The map provided here shows the distribution of the species based on Conchological Society data.

Ecology and behaviour

The species is carnivorous and feeds by sucking in food with an adapted muscular gill. It probably feeds mainly on dead crustaceans.

Key identification features
  • Spout is relatively long
  • Surface is sculptured with only concentric lines - no ribs
Taxon version key
[NBNSYS0000180931]
Sort order
11520
Taxonomic group
Marine bivalve
  • Read more about Cuspidaria rostrata

Brittle shell up to 2.5cm in length. The shell is white but obscured with a cream periostracum. The inside is also white. The surface is sculptured with faint concentric rings.

Cuspidaria cuspidata

Submitted by Steve Wilkinson on Sat, 05/12/2009 22:15
Distribution and status

The map provided here shows the distribution of the species based on Conchological Society data.

Ecology and behaviour

Burrows in muddy sand or gravel. The species is carnivorous and feeds by sucking in food with an adapted muscular gill. It probably feeds mainly on dead crustaceans.

Key identification features
  • Posterior of shell drawn out into a 'spout'
  • The spout is relatively short
  • Surface is sculptured with only concentric lines - no ribs
Taxon version key
[NBNSYS0000180927]
Sort order
11480
Taxonomic group
Marine bivalve
  • Read more about Cuspidaria cuspidata

Brittle shell up to 2cm in length. The shell is white in colour but obscured by a brown periostracum. The inside is white, sometimes with a blue tinge. The surface of the shell is sculptured with faint concentric lines.

Cuspidaria costellata

Submitted by Steve Wilkinson on Sat, 05/12/2009 22:15
Distribution and status

Rare. Distributed from the Norwegian Sea to the Mediterranean

The map provided here shows the distribution of the species based on Conchological Society data.

Ecology and behaviour

Burrows in muddy sand and gravel. The species is carnivorous and feeds by sucking in food with an adapted muscular gill. It probably feeds mainly on dead crustaceans.

Key identification features
  • Surface sculptured with 20-30 radiating ribs
Taxon version key
[NBNSYS0000180926]
Sort order
11530
Taxonomic group
Marine bivalve
  • Read more about Cuspidaria costellata

Brittle shell up to 1cm in length. The shell is white in colour but can appear translucent. The surface is obscured by a brown periostracum. The surface of the shell is sculptured with radiating ribs and concentric lines

Crassostrea virginica

Submitted by Steve Wilkinson on Sat, 05/12/2009 22:15
Vernacular names
Eastern oyster
Distribution and status

Non-native.

The map provided here shows the distribution of the species based on Conchological Society data.

Ecology and behaviour

This species was originally imported (pre 1939) but has not yet established breeding populations in the wild.

Key identification features
  • The shell margins near the beak are smooth
  • The margin of the shell is flat
  • The muscle scar is purple or brown
Taxon version key
[NBNSYS0000180828]
Sort order
9550
Taxonomic group
Marine bivalve
  • Read more about Crassostrea virginica

Solid shell up to 17cm from beak to opposite margin. It is dirty white to brown in colour, occasionally with purple markings. The surface of the shell is sculptured with concentric ridges and lines.

Clinocardium ciliatum

Submitted by Steve Wilkinson on Sat, 05/12/2009 22:15
Distribution and status

The map provided here shows the distribution of the species based on Conchological Society data.

Ecology and behaviour

Lives in sand or muddy gravel, 10-100m.

Taxon version key
[NBNSYS0000180595]
Sort order
10360
Taxonomic group
Marine bivalve
  • Read more about Clinocardium ciliatum

Up to 35mm long, 40mm high, 35mm across, plump, roundish. Juveniles longer than high. 32-38 ridged close-set radial ribs, sometimes obscure towards the posterior, crossed by concentric striations and growth lines. Periostracum grey and thick. Teeth small, sharp. Margin crenulated, with fluting on the inside extending about 1/5 of the way into the shell. Greyish yellow with narrow concentric bands of darker colour. Inside off-white.

Chlamys subsulcata

Submitted by Steve Wilkinson on Sat, 05/12/2009 22:15
Distribution and status

Rare. Distributed from northern Norway to the Mediterranean

The map provided here shows the distribution of the species based on Conchological Society data.

Key identification features
  • Two types of rib, one smaller than the other, which alternate across the shell surface
  • All ribs have one or two rows of tubercles
Taxon version key
[NBNSYS0000180397]
Sort order
9610
Taxonomic group
Marine bivalve
  • Read more about Chlamys subsulcata

Brittle shell up to 2.5 cm in length. It is white, yellow, brown, pink or orange in colour. The surface is sculptured with broad ribs interspersed with finer ones all of which are covered with tubercles. Concentric lines are also present.

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