Pinctada Maculata
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''Pinctada'' is a
genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...
of saltwater oysters, marine bivalve
mollusk Mollusca is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda, the members of which are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 85,000  extant species of molluscs are recognized. The number of fossil species is e ...
s in the
family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...
Pteriidae Pteriidae, also called the feather oysters, is a family of medium-sized to large saltwater clams. They are pearl oysters, marine bivalve molluscs in the order Pteriida. Some of the species in this family are important economically as the sou ...
. These
pearl A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft tissue (specifically the mantle) of a living shelled mollusk or another animal, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is composed of calcium carb ...
oyster Oyster is the common name for a number of different families of salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackish habitats. In some species, the valves are highly calcified, and many are somewhat irregular in shape. Many, but not ...
s have a strong inner shell layer composed of nacre, also known as "mother of pearl". Pearl oysters are not closely related to either the edible oysters of family
Ostreidae The Ostreidae, the true oysters, include most species of molluscs commonly consumed as oysters. Pearl oysters are not true oysters, and belong to the order Pteriida. Like scallops, true oysters have a central adductor muscle, which means the ...
or the freshwater pearl mussels of the families
Unionidae The Unionidae are a family of freshwater mussels, the largest in the order Unionida, the bivalve molluscs sometimes known as river mussels, or simply as unionids. The range of distribution for this family is world-wide. It is at its most divers ...
and Margaritiferidae. ''
Pinctada margaritifera ''Pinctada margaritifera'', commonly known as the black-lip pearl oyster, is a species of pearl oyster, a saltwater mollusk, a marine bivalve mollusk in the family Pteriidae. This species is common in the Indo-Pacific within tropical coral ree ...
'' and '' P. maxima'' are used for culturing South Sea and Tahitian pearls. They are cultured widely primarily in the central and eastern Indo-Pacific. A pearl oyster can be seen on the reverse side of the 1,000-peso note of the
Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
.


Species of commercial value

All species within the genus produce
pearl A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft tissue (specifically the mantle) of a living shelled mollusk or another animal, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is composed of calcium carb ...
s. Attempts have been made to harvest pearls commercially from many ''Pinctada''
species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
. However, the only species that are currently of significant commercial interest are: *
Gulf pearl oyster ''Pinctada radiata'', commonly known as the Atlantic pearl-oyster or the Gulf pearl oyster is a species of pearl oyster distributed throughout the Indo-Pacific and in the Mediterranean. Its range extends as far north as Japan and as far south as ...
, ''Pinctada radiata'';
Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The bod ...
,
Red Sea The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; ...
,
Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ...
and throughout the Indo-Pacific as far as Japan and Australia. *
Black-lip oyster ''Pinctada margaritifera'', commonly known as the black-lip pearl oyster, is a species of pearl oyster, a saltwater mollusk, a marine bivalve mollusk in the family Pteriidae. This species is common in the Indo-Pacific within tropical coral ree ...
, ''Pinctada margaritifera'';
Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The bod ...
and southwestern part of
Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by t ...
; Fiji;
Tahiti Tahiti (; Tahitian ; ; previously also known as Otaheite) is the largest island of the Windward group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia. It is located in the central part of the Pacific Ocean and the nearest major landmass is Austra ...
;
Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...
;
Baja California Baja California (; 'Lower California'), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California), is a state in Mexico. It is the northernmost and westernmost of the 32 federal entities of Mex ...
;
Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United ...
* Gold-lip oyster, ''Pinctada maxima''; Australia; Fiji; Tahiti; * White-lip oyster, ''Pinctada maxima''; Australia; Fiji; Tahiti; Myanmar; * '' Pinctada mazatlanica''; Mexico; Panama; * Akoya pearl oyster, ''
Pinctada fucata ''Pinctada fucata'', the Akoya pearl oyster (), is a species of marine bivalve mollusc in the family Pteriidae, the pearl oysters. Some authorities classify this oyster as ''Pinctada imbricata fucata'' (Gould, 1850). It is native to shallow w ...
'' (also called ''P. imbricata''), Red Sea; Sri Lanka;
Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The bod ...
;
Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by t ...
; Western
Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contin ...
; Australia; China;
Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
; * Shark Bay pearl oyster ''
Pinctada albina ''Pinctada albina'' is a species of pearl oyster of the genus ''Pinctada'', known as the sharks bay shell. Another common name is the Arafura shell. It is called the "Amami gai" in Japan. ''Pinctada'' ''Pinctada albina'' belongs to the genus ' ...
''; Australia The various species of ''Pinctada'' produce different maximum sizes and colors of pearls, depending on the size of the species and the natural color of the nacre inside the shell. Black South Sea pearls, or Tahitian pearls come from the black-lip oyster; white and golden South Sea pearls from the white-lip and golden-lip oysters; and Akoya cultured pearls from ''Pinctada fucata martensii'', the Akoya pearl oyster. Pearls are also obtained in commercial quantities from some species of the closely related winged oyster genus '' Pteria''. Pearls are also produced from freshwater mussel species unrelated to pearl oysters. These freshwater species include '' Hyriopsis cumingii'', ''
Hyriopsis schlegelii ''Hyriopsis'' is a genus of bivalves belonging to the family Unionidae. The species of this genus are found in Southeastern Asia. Species: *'' Hyriopsis altealata'' *'' Hyriopsis bialata'' *'' Hyriopsis bogatchevi'' *'' Hyriopsis cumingii'' ...
'', and a hybrid of the two species. At danger from the large demand for pearls, the typical lifespan of a pearl oyster is usually around 3 years to 14 years. ''Pinctada maxima'' are seeded at about 2 years of age and take 2 years to fully develop a pearl. They can be reseeded up to 3 or 4 times. Akoya pearls are harvested after about 9 to 16 months. Research carried out by biologist
Aldemaro Romero Jr. Aldemaro Romero Jr. (born September 11, 1951, in Caracas) is a Venezuelan/American scientist, communicator, and public intellectual. He has published more than 1,100 works, more than 30 books and monographs, and produced, directed, written and/or ...
allowed him to discover that the first animal population depleted by Europeans in the American continent was a
pearl oyster ''Pinctada'' is a genus of saltwater oysters, marine bivalve mollusks in the family Pteriidae. These pearl oysters have a strong inner shell layer composed of nacre, also known as "mother of pearl". Pearl oysters are not closely related to e ...
species (''Pinctada imbricata'') off the coast of Venezuela. He analyzed historical records and used information about the biology of these and other species to explain its rapid disappearance.


Species list

The
World Register of Marine Species The World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) is a taxonomic database that aims to provide an authoritative and comprehensive list of names of marine organisms. Content The content of the registry is edited and maintained by scientific specialis ...
includes the following species in the genus: * ''
Pinctada albina ''Pinctada albina'' is a species of pearl oyster of the genus ''Pinctada'', known as the sharks bay shell. Another common name is the Arafura shell. It is called the "Amami gai" in Japan. ''Pinctada'' ''Pinctada albina'' belongs to the genus ' ...
'' (Lamarck, 1819) – Shark Bay pearl oyster * '' Pinctada capensis'' (Sowerby III, 1890) * '' Pinctada chemnitzii'' (Philippi, 1849) * '' Pinctada cumingii'' (Reeve, 1857) * ''
Pinctada fucata ''Pinctada fucata'', the Akoya pearl oyster (), is a species of marine bivalve mollusc in the family Pteriidae, the pearl oysters. Some authorities classify this oyster as ''Pinctada imbricata fucata'' (Gould, 1850). It is native to shallow w ...
'' (Gould, 1850) – Akoya pearl oyster – now accepted as ''Pinctada imbricata fucata'' * '' Pinctada galtsoffi'' Bartsch, 1931 * ''
Pinctada imbricata ''Pinctada imbricata'' is a species of bivalve belonging to the family Pteriidae. The species has almost cosmopolitan distribution In biogeography, cosmopolitan distribution is the term for the range of a taxon that extends across all or m ...
'' Röding, 1798 – Gulf pearl oyster * '' Pinctada inflata'' (Schumacher, 1817) * '' Pinctada longisquamosa'' (Dunker, 1852) * '' Pinctada maculata'' (Gould, 1850) * ''
Pinctada margaritifera ''Pinctada margaritifera'', commonly known as the black-lip pearl oyster, is a species of pearl oyster, a saltwater mollusk, a marine bivalve mollusk in the family Pteriidae. This species is common in the Indo-Pacific within tropical coral ree ...
'' (Linnaeus, 1758) – Black-lip oyster * ''
Pinctada maxima ''Pinctada maxima'' is a species of pearl oyster, a marine bivalve mollusk in the family Pteriidae, the pearl oysters. There are two different color varieties: the Silver-lipped oyster and the Gold-lipped oyster. These bivalves are the largest ...
'' (Jameson, 1901) – White-lip oyster or gold-lip oyster * '' Pinctada mazatlanica'' (Hanley, 1856) * '' Pinctada nigra'' (Gould, 1850) * '' Pinctada petersii'' (Dunker, 1852) * '' Pinctada radiata'' (Leach, 1814) – Atlantic pearl-oyster – now accepted as ''Pinctada imbricata radiata'' * '' Pinctada reeveana'' (Dunker, 1872) * '' Pinctada sugillata'' (Reeve, 1857) * '' Pinctada vidua'' (Gould, 1850)


References


External links

*
OBIS Indo-Pacific molluscan database entry for ''Pinctada''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1140748 Pteriidae Bivalve genera Commercial molluscs Taxa named by Peter Friedrich Röding