Malacology
Malacology is the study of mollusks. This includes animals like octopus, snails, slugs, and clams. It is the second largest phylum of animals, making them one of the most successful groups on the planet. There are over 80,000 described species of mollusks with many more left to be discovered. Mullusca is composed of 8 recognized classes including Cephalopoda, Gastropoda, Polyplacophora, Scaphapoda, Monoplacophorans, the Aplacophorans, Caudofoveata and Solenogastres, and Bivalvia.
Atlantic Bay Scallop
(Lamarck, 1819)
Argopecten irradians
Class:
Bivalvia
Order:
Pectinida
Family:
Pectinidae
Image Voucher:
ANSP 478157
Ecological Information
Distribution:
Depth (m):
Massachusetts to the Gulf of Mexico
0 to 20 meters
Diet:
Suspension feeder; They feed on algae and organic particles
Habitat:
Marine; Shallow water around seagrass
Misc. Facts
The Atlantic Bay Scallop is the official state shell of New York. They are a commercially significant species that is harvested and aquacultured along the US East coast.
Citations
MolluscaBase eds. (2021). MolluscaBase. Argopecten irradians (Lamarck, 1819). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=156817 on 2021-06-10
Morris, P. A. (1987). A field guide to shells: Atlantic and Gulf coasts and the West Indies (3rd ed.). Houghton Mifflin.
Rosenberg, G. 2009. Malacolog 4.1.1: A Database of Western Atlantic Marine Mollusca. [WWW database (version 4.1.1)] URL http://www.malacolog.org/
Mikkelsen, P. M., & Bieler, R. (28). Seashells of southern Florida: Living marine mollusks of the Florida keys and Adjacent REGIONS, bivalves. Princeton: Princeton University Press.