''Spondylus ostreoides'' is a species of spiny oyster. It was only found once, off

Raoul Island Raoul Island (''Sunday Island'') is the largest and northernmost of the main Kermadec Islands, south south-west of 'Ata Island of Tonga and north north-east of New Zealand's North Island. It has been the source of vigorous volcanic activity ...

in the South Pacific Ocean.

Description

The only known specimen of ''S. ostreoides'' was found in 1885 and is currently in the

British Museum of Natural History The Natural History Museum in London is a museum that exhibits a vast range of specimens from various segments of natural history. It is one of three major museums on Exhibition Road in South Kensington, the others being the Science Museum ...

; only the shell has been preserved. It is heavily worn, but appears to have commarginal rather than

radial Radial is a geometric term of location which may refer to: Mathematics and Direction * Vector (geometric), a line * Radius, adjective form of * Radial distance, a directional coordinate in a polar coordinate system * Radial set * A bearing f ...

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable ...

, a character not found in other members of the

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 ...

, and typical of

true oysters 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, within the Pectinoidea, the

Entoliidae The Entoliidae, also referred to as the entoliids, are a taxonomic family of saltwater clams, marine bivalve mollusks in the order Pectinida. They are related to and are considered the ancestors of modern scallops. In the geological record the f ...

. The cemented valve length is 13.8 mm, upper valve length is 12.5 mm.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q14377669 Spondylidae