Plicatulidae
The Plicatulidae are a family of saltwater clams, marine bivalve mollusks, known commonly as kitten's paws or kittenpaws.[1] These bivalves are related to oysters and scallops. The family has a single living genus, Plicatula, with a second, Harpax known from fossils.
| Plicatulidae | |
|---|---|
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| Members of the species Plicatula gibbosa, including both modern (right) and fossil (left) specimens | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Bivalvia |
| Order: | Pectinida |
| Superfamily: | Plicatuloidea |
| Family: | Plicatulidae Watson, 1930 |
| Genera | |
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See tex | |
Description
Plicatulidae are small, with weakly convex shells which are irregularly oval or even almost triangular. Typically, they attach themselves to a hard surface by the right valve. The ligament is internal and triangular.
Life cycle
Plicatulidae members start off in the larval stage.
Genera and species
- Harpax Parkinson, 1811
- Plicatula Lamarck, 1801
- Plicatula australis Lamarck, 1819
- Plicatula chinensis Mörch, 1853
- Plicatula complanata
- Plicatula gibbosa Lamarck, 1801 — Atlantic kitten's paw
- Plicatula hunterae Shaak and Nicol, 1974
- Plicatula miskito Petuch, 1998
- Plicatula muricata
- Plicatula plicata Linnaeus, 1758
- Plicastulostrea onca, is a species from Thailand and is disputed
References
- Abbott, R.T. & Morris, P.A. A Field Guide to Shells: Atlantic and Gulf Coasts and the West Indies. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1995. 34.
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