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Venus (genus)
Encyclopedia
Venus is a genus
of small to large saltwater clam
s in the family Veneridae
, which is sometimes known as the Venus clams and their relatives. These are marine
bivalve molluscs.
The genus Venus is named after the Roman goddess of love, Venus
. The common name
s of clams in this genus often include the word Venus. However, there are also some bivalves that are still called Venus clams because they used to be in the genus Venus, even though they are now placed in other genera. For example, the species within the genus Mercenaria
were formerly in the genus Venus.
The family Veneridae contains over four hundred known species, many of which are attractive and popular with shell-collectors.
A few species that still have "venus" as part of their common name, but which are no longer in the genus Venus are:
The shell of venerids varies in shape, and includes shells that are circular, triangular and rectangular. Characteristically venus clams possess a porcelain-like inner shell layer, a complex tooth structure in the hinge, well-developed escutchion and lunule and a well-developed pallial sinus.
Veneridae colonize the sandy ocean bottom, and their populations are often dense and large. The Veneroida
order typically have a folded gill structure which is well developed for filtering out small food particles.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of small to large saltwater clam
Clam
The word "clam" can be applied to freshwater mussels, and other freshwater bivalves, as well as marine bivalves.In the United States, "clam" can be used in several different ways: one, as a general term covering all bivalve molluscs...
s in the family Veneridae
Veneridae
The Veneridae or venerids, also known as the Venus clams, are a very large family of minute to large, saltwater clams, marine bivalve molluscs. There are over 500 living species of venerid bivalves, most of which are edible, and many of which are exploited as a food source.Many of the most...
, which is sometimes known as the Venus clams and their relatives. These are marine
Marine (ocean)
Marine is an umbrella term. As an adjective it is usually applicable to things relating to the sea or ocean, such as marine biology, marine ecology and marine geology...
bivalve molluscs.
The genus Venus is named after the Roman goddess of love, Venus
Venus (mythology)
Venus is a Roman goddess principally associated with love, beauty, sex,sexual seduction and fertility, who played a key role in many Roman religious festivals and myths...
. The common name
Common name
A common name of a taxon or organism is a name in general use within a community; it is often contrasted with the scientific name for the same organism...
s of clams in this genus often include the word Venus. However, there are also some bivalves that are still called Venus clams because they used to be in the genus Venus, even though they are now placed in other genera. For example, the species within the genus Mercenaria
Mercenaria
Mercenaria is a genus of edible saltwater clams, marine bivalve molluscs in the family Veneridae, the Venus clams.The genus Mercenaria includes the quahogs, Mercenaria mercenaria, the northern quahog or hard clam, and M. campechiensis, the southern quahog...
were formerly in the genus Venus.
The family Veneridae contains over four hundred known species, many of which are attractive and popular with shell-collectors.
A few species that still have "venus" as part of their common name, but which are no longer in the genus Venus are:
- the sunray venus, Macrocallista nimbosaMacrocallista nimbosaMacrocallista nimbosa, or the sunray venus clam, is a species of bivalve mollusc in the family Veneridae. It can be found along the Atlantic coast of North America, ranging from North Carolina to Texas....
, (Lightfoot) - cross barred venusCross barred venusChione cancellata, is a species of medium-sized saltwater clam, a marine bivalve mollusc in the family Veneridae, the venus clams.This species is now understood to be strictly Caribbean in distribution. The more northern species which resembles this, which is usually called the "cross-barred...
, Chione cancellata, (Linnaeus) - lady in waiting venus, Chione intapurpurea, (Conrad)
- imperial venusImperial venusThe imperial venus clam, Chione latilirata, is a bivalve mollusc in the family Veneridae. It grows to about 4.5 cm , and lives off the eastern shores of North and South America, south of Cape Hatteras, in 20 to 40 m depths. Occasionally it is found washed up on ocean shores. It ranges from...
, Chione latilirata, (Conrad) - gray pygmy venus, Chione grus, (Holmes)
The shell of venerids varies in shape, and includes shells that are circular, triangular and rectangular. Characteristically venus clams possess a porcelain-like inner shell layer, a complex tooth structure in the hinge, well-developed escutchion and lunule and a well-developed pallial sinus.
Veneridae colonize the sandy ocean bottom, and their populations are often dense and large. The Veneroida
Veneroida
The Veneroida or veneroids are an order of bivalve molluscs. They include some familiar forms such as saltwater clams and cockles, and a number of freshwater bivalves including zebra mussels....
order typically have a folded gill structure which is well developed for filtering out small food particles.
Species
- Venus affinis (Sowerby, 1855)
- Venus albina Sowerby, 1853
- Venus casina Linnaeus, 1758 Europe
- Venus cassinaeformis Yokoyama, 1926
- Venus chevreuxi Dautzenberg, 1891
- Venus corbis Lamarck, 1818
- Venus crenulata (Schröter, 1788)
- Venus declivis Sowerby, 1853
- Venus elegans (Gray, 1828)
- Banded venus, Venus fasciataVenus fasciataThe banded venus, Venus fasciata, is a marine bivalve mollusc in the family Veneridae. Species currently classified in the genus Venus are generally referred to as venuses or venus clams....
(da CostaEmanuel Mendez da CostaEmanuel Mendez da Costa was an English botanist, naturalist, philosopher, and collector of valuable notes and of manuscripts, and of anecdotes of the literati....
, 1778) - Venus foveolata (Sowerby, 1853)
- Striped venus, Venus gallina Linnaeus, 1758
- Venus lamellaris Schumacher, 1817
- Venus lamellata (Lamarck, 1818)
- Venus lubuana (A. AdamsArthur Adams (zoologist)Arthur Adams was an English physician and naturalist.Adams was assistant surgeon on board H.M.S. "Actaeon" in company with HMS Samarang in the British Navy during the survey of the Malay Archipelago, the Japan Sea, Korea and China,from 1843 to 1846. He edited the Zoology of the voyage of H.M.S....
and ReeveLovell Augustus ReeveLovell Augustus Reeve was an English conchologist.Lovell Augustus Reeve was initially apprenticed to a grocer of Ludgate Hill between 1827 and '34...
, 1850) - Venus (Gemma) manhattensis (Prime, 1862): 482-483, text fig. (syntype, missing).
- Venus materna IredaleTom IredaleTom Iredale was an English-born ornithologist and malacologist who had a long association with Australia, where he lived for most of his life. He was an autodidact who never went to university and lacked formal training...
, 1929 - Venus mindoroensis (Smith, 1916)
- Venus nux Gmelin, 1791
- Oval venus, Venus ovata Pennant, 1777
- Venus persimilis IredaleTom IredaleTom Iredale was an English-born ornithologist and malacologist who had a long association with Australia, where he lived for most of his life. He was an autodidact who never went to university and lacked formal training...
, 1930 - Venus punctigera Dautzenberg & Fischer, 1906
- Venus resticulata Sowerby, 1853
- Venus rosalina Rang, 1802
- Venus thomassini (Fischer and Vukadinovi, 1977)
- Venus toreuma Augustus Addison GouldAugustus Addison Gould was an American conchologist and malacologist.-Biography:...
, 1851 - Venus undata (Pennant, 1777)
- Venus verdensis (Dautz and Fischer, 1906)
- Warty venusWarty venusThe warty venus, Venus verrucosa, is a species of saltwater clam. They are marine bivalve molluscs in the family Veneridae, sometimes known as the Venus clams.-Distribution:...
, Venus verrucosa Linnaeus, 1758 - Venus verrucosa simulans (Sowerby, 1844)