''Pinctada'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

of saltwater oysters,

marine Marine is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the sea or ocean. Marine or marines may refer to: Ocean * Maritime (disambiguation) * Marine art * Marine biology * Marine debris * Marine habitats * Marine life * Marine pollution Military * ...

bivalve Bivalvia (), in previous centuries referred to as the Lamellibranchiata and Pelecypoda, is a class of marine and freshwater molluscs that have laterally compressed bodies enclosed by a shell consisting of two hinged parts. As a group, bival ...

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 Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

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 al ...

s have a strong inner shell layer composed of

nacre Nacre ( , ), also known as mother of pearl, is an organicinorganic composite material produced by some molluscs as an inner shell layer; it is also the material of which pearls are composed. It is strong, resilient, and iridescent. Nacre is f ...

, 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 sh ...

or the freshwater pearl

mussel Mussel () is the common name used for members of several families of bivalve molluscs, from saltwater and Freshwater bivalve, freshwater habitats. These groups have in common a shell whose outline is elongated and asymmetrical compared with other ...

s 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 diverse ...

and

Margaritiferidae Margaritiferidae is a family of medium-sized freshwater mussels, aquatic bivalve molluscs in the order Unionida. Text may have been copied from this source, which is available under Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)licence. It is the m ...

. ''

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 The Indo-Pacific is a vast biogeographic region of Earth. In a narrow sense, sometimes known as the Indo-West Pacific or Indo-Pacific Asia, it comprises the tropical waters of the Indian Ocean, the western and central Pacific Ocean, and the ...

. 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

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 a ...

, ''Pinctada radiata'';

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Persis, Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a Mediterranean sea (oceanography), me ...

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''; T ...

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 ea ...

and throughout the

as far as

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. *

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 reef ...

, ''Pinctada margaritifera'';

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 th ...

;

Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...

;

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 Austr ...

;

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 C. Wells, Joh ...

;

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 oceanic basin, 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 ...

* Gold-lip oyster, ''Pinctada maxima''; Australia; Fiji; Tahiti; * White-lip oyster, ''Pinctada maxima''; Australia; Fiji; Tahiti; Myanmar; * ''

Pinctada mazatlanica ''Pinctada mazatlanica'' is a species of tropical marine bivalve mollusc in the family Pteriidae, the pearl oysters. It is known by the English common names pearl oyster, Mazatlan pearl oyster, and Panama pearl oyster. Spanish common names inc ...

''; 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 Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

;

; 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 continen ...

; Australia;

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

;

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

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

species unrelated to pearl oysters. These freshwater species include ''

Hyriopsis cumingii ''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'' ...

'', ''

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 ei ...

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 specialist ...

includes the following species in the genus: * ''

'' (Lamarck, 1819) – Shark Bay pearl oyster * '' Pinctada capensis'' (Sowerby III, 1890) * '' Pinctada chemnitzii'' (Philippi, 1849) * ''

Pinctada cumingii ''Pinctada'' is a genus of saltwater oysters, Marine (ocean), marine bivalve mollusks in the family (biology), family Pteriidae. These pearl oysters have a strong inner shell layer composed of nacre, also known as "mother of pearl". Pearl oyste ...

'' (Reeve, 1857) * ''

'' (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) * ''

'' (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 * ''

'' (Hanley, 1856) * ''

Pinctada nigra ''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 eith ...

'' (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 ''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 ...

'' (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