Solemyidae is a

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 ...

of saltwater clams,

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 * ...

protobranch

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 order

Solemyida Solemyida is an order of bivalve mollusc 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 re ...

Biology

Solemyids are remarkable in that their digestive tract is either extremely small or non-existent, and their feeding appendages are too short to reach outside the shell. It has been shown that these clams host

sulphur Sulfur (or sulphur in British English) is a chemical element with the symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundant, multivalent and nonmetallic. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms form cyclic octatomic molecules with a chemical formula ...

oxidizing Redox (reduction–oxidation, , ) is a type of chemical reaction in which the oxidation states of substrate change. Oxidation is the loss of electrons or an increase in the oxidation state, while reduction is the gain of electrons or a d ...

bacteria Bacteria (; singular: bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one biological cell. They constitute a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria were among ...

intracellularly within their

gill A gill () is a respiratory organ that many aquatic organisms use to extract dissolved oxygen from water and to excrete carbon dioxide. The gills of some species, such as hermit crabs, have adapted to allow respiration on land provided they are ...

filaments. As chemoautotrophs, these bacterial symbionts synthesize organic matter from CO₂ and are the primary source of nutrition for the whole organism. In turn, the animal host provides its symbionts a habitat in which they have access to the substrates of chemoautotrophy (O₂, CO₂, and reduced inorganic compounds such as H₂S). Together, these partners create "animals" with novel metabolic capabilities.

Genera and species

The family Solemyidae includes two genera and the following species: * '' Acharax'' Dall, 1908 ** '' Acharax alinae'' Métivier & Cosel, 1993 ** '' Acharax bartschii'' (Dall, 1908) ** '' Acharax caribbaea'' (Vokes, 1970) ** '' Acharax clarificata'' Dell, 1995 ** '' Acharax gadirae'' Oliver, Rodrigues & Cunha, 2011 ** '' Acharax grandis'' (Verrill & Bush, 1898) ** '' Acharax japonica'' (Dunker, 1882) ** '' Acharax johnsoni'' (Dall, 1891) ** '' Acharax patagonica'' (E. A. Smith, 1885) ** '' Acharax prashadi'' (Vokes, 1955) * ''

Solemya ''Solemya'' is a genus of saltwater clams, marine bivalve mollusks in the family Solemyidae, the awning clams. ''Solemya'' is the type genus of the family Solemyidae. Description The shell valves of species in this genus are fragile and subcyl ...

Lamarck Jean-Baptiste Pierre Antoine de Monet, chevalier de Lamarck (1 August 1744 – 18 December 1829), often known simply as Lamarck (; ), was a French naturalist, biologist, academic, and soldier. He was an early proponent of the idea that biolog ...

, 1818 ** ''

Solemya africana ''Solemya'' is a genus of saltwater clams, marine bivalve mollusks in the family Solemyidae, the awning clams. ''Solemya'' is the type genus of the family Solemyidae. Description The shell valves of species in this genus are fragile and subcyl ...

'' Martens, 1880 ** ''

Solemya atacama ''Solemya'' is a genus of saltwater clams, marine bivalve mollusks in the family Solemyidae, the awning clams. ''Solemya'' is the type genus of the family Solemyidae. Description The shell valves of species in this genus are fragile and subcyl ...

'' (Kuznetzov & Schileyko, 1984) ** ''

Solemya australis ''Solemya'' is a genus of saltwater clams, marine bivalve mollusks in the family Solemyidae, the awning clams. ''Solemya'' is the type genus of the family Solemyidae. Description The shell valves of species in this genus are fragile and subcyl ...

'' Lamarck, 1818 ** ''

Solemya borealis ''Solemya borealis'' , the boreal awning clam, is a species of saltwater clam, a marine bivalve mollusc in the family Solemyidae the awning clams. This species is found along the northeastern coast of North America, from Nova Scotia to Connect ...

'' Totten, 1834 ** '' Solemya elarraichensis'' Oliver, Rodrigues & Cunha, 2011 ** '' Solemya flava'' Sato, Sasaki & Watanabe, 2013 ** '' Solemya moretonensis'' Taylor, Glover & Williams, 2008 ** '' Solemya notialis'' Simone, 2009 ** '' Solemya occidentalis'' Deshayes, 1857 ** '' Solemya panamensis'' Dall, 1908 ** '' Solemya parkinsonii'' E. A. Smith, 1874 ** '' Solemya pervernicosa'' (Kuroda, 1948) ** '' Solemya pusilla'' Gould, 1861 ** '' Solemya tagiri'' Okutani, Hashimoto & Miura, 2004 ** '' Solemya terraereginae'' Iredale, 1929 ** '' Solemya togata'' (Poli, 1791) ** '' Solemya valvulus'' Carpenter, 1864 ** '' Solemya velesiana'' Iredale, 1931 ** ''

Solemya velum ''Solemya velum'', the Atlantic awning clam, is a species of marine bivalve mollusc in the family Solemyidae, the awning clams. This species is found along the eastern coast of North America, from Nova Scotia to Florida Florida is a stat ...

'' Say, 1822 ** '' Solemya winckworthi'' Prashad, 1932

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3017450 Environmental microbiology Bivalve families Chemosynthetic symbiosis Taxa named by John Edward Gray