Tidewater Mucket
Atlanticoncha ochracea
DIAGNOSTICS 5
SHELL
- size: mid-sized; maximum 80 mm
- thickness: thin
- shape: oval, males more pointed at posterior end; low wings occasional on either side of beaks.
- width: inflated to very inflated, even in very young
- surface: smooth
- color/markings: light yellow, reddish or greenish to brown; plain or with thin, obscure green rays throughout the shell
- beaks: inflated, slightly above hinge line, sculptures: 5-6 single looped ridges
- sexual dimorphism: usually obvious: posterior usually pointed at end of posterior ridge in males while squared or rounded in females. Adult males grow larger than females; females more inflated than males.
- pseudocardinal teeth: small and compressed/ lamellate and situated well anterior from beaks; hinge line is straight to slightly curved
- lateral teeth: thin, curved
- nacre: white, commonly pinkish (predominantly in posterior half)
SOFT PARTS: ------------------
Similar species/lookalikes: Most similar to L. cariosa within its Canadian distribution. L. cariosa shares the same general shape but reaches a larger size, has a slightly thicker shell and a curvier hinge line. Nacre is more rarely pinkish and raying is usually confined to posterior end - when present - in L. cariosa. In L. cariosa pseudocardinals are also thicker and - more importantly - positioned much closer to beaks, a feature that is probably the most useful in differentiating the two species when internal features are available. Lastly, winging on hinge is absent in L. cariosa .
DISTRIBUTION/WATERSHEDS 6
NEW BRUNSWICK
-
NOVA SCOTIA
-
-
Sources and Credits
- (c) Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, some rights reserved (CC BY), https://www.flickr.com/photos/serc_biodiversity/38568290922/
- (c) Dwayne Sabine, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Dwayne Sabine
- Daderot, no known copyright restrictions (public domain), http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Leptodea_ochracea_-_Springfield_Science_Museum_-_Springfield,_MA_-_DSC03459.JPG
- (c) Lauren Hallden, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Lauren Hallden
- Adapted by Philippe Blais from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leptodea_ochracea
- (c) Philippe Blais, some rights reserved (CC BY-ND)
