The Semelidae are a

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 ...

of saltwater

clam Clam is a common name for several kinds of bivalve molluscs. The word is often applied only to those that are edible and live as infauna, spending most of their lives halfway buried in the sand of the seafloor or riverbeds. Clams have two sh ...

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, biv ...

molluscs in the order

Cardiida Cardiida is an order of bivalves belonging to the class Bivalvia. Families: * Cardiidae * Donacidae * Ephippiodontidae * Ferganoconchidae * Glaucomyidae * Goniocardiidae * Icanotiidae * Lahillidae * Limnocyrenidae * Lutetidae * Psammobi ...

Description

Members of this family have rounded or oval, elongated shells, much flattened. The two valves are connected by an internal ligament in contrast to the closely related family

Tellinidae The Tellinidae are a family of marine bivalve molluscs of the order Cardiida. Commonly known as tellins or tellens, they live fairly deep in soft sediments in shallow seas and respire using long siphons that reach up to the surface of the sedime ...

where the ligament is external. The two separate siphons are very long, sometimes several times the length of the shell. These siphons have a characteristic cruciform muscle at their base.

Selected genera

Genera of Semelidae (with some notable species also listed) include:ITIS
/ref> *'' Abra''

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 **'' Abra aequalis'' ( Say, 1822) **'' Abra alba'' (Wood W., 1802) **''

Abra californica Abra may refer to: Places * Abra, Burkina Faso * Abra, Ivory Coast * Abra (province), a province of the Philippines ** Abra's at-large congressional district ** Legislative district of Abra * Abra de Ilog, a municipality of Occidental Mindoro ...

'' Kundsen, 1970 **''

Abra lioica Abra may refer to: Places * Abra, Burkina Faso * Abra, Ivory Coast * Abra (province), a province of the Philippines ** Abra's at-large congressional district ** Legislative district of Abra * Abra de Ilog, a municipality of Occidental Mindoro ...

'' (

Dall Dall may refer to: People * Anders Bendssøn Dall (died 1607), Danish Lutheran bishop * Bobby Dall (born 1963), American musician * Caroline Healey Dall (1822–1912), American feminist writer *Clarrie Dall (1887–1953), Australian footballer * C ...

, 1881) **'' Abra longicallis'' Sacchi, 1836 **''

Abra nitida Abra may refer to: Places * Abra, Burkina Faso * Abra, Ivory Coast * Abra (province), a province of the Philippines ** Abra's at-large congressional district ** Legislative district of Abra * Abra de Ilog, a municipality of Occidental Mindoro ...

'' (O. F. Mueller, 1776) **''

Abra pacifica Abra may refer to: Places * Abra, Burkina Faso * Abra, Ivory Coast * Abra (province), a province of the Philippines ** Abra's at-large congressional district ** Legislative district of Abra * Abra de Ilog, a municipality of Occidental Mindoro ...

, 1915 **'' Abra prismatica'' **'' Abra profundorum'' E. A. Smith, 1885 **'' Abra tenuis'' ( Montagu, 1818) **'' Abra tepocana''

, 1915 *'' Argyrodonax'' Dall, 1911 *'' Cumingia'' G. B. Sowerby I, 1833 **'' Cumingia californica''

Conrad Conrad may refer to: People * Conrad (name) Places United States * Conrad, Illinois, an unincorporated community * Conrad, Indiana, an unincorporated community * Conrad, Iowa, a city * Conrad, Montana, a city * Conrad Glacier, Washingto ...

, 1837 **'' Cumingia coarctata'' G. B. Sowerby I, 1833 **'' Cumingia tellinoides'' (

, 1831) *'' Ervilia'' Turton, 1822 **''

Ervilia bisculpta ''Ervilia'' is a genus of marine clams in the family Semelidae The Semelidae are a family of saltwater clams, marine bivalve molluscs in the order Cardiida. Description Members of this family have rounded or oval, elongated shells, much ...

'' Gould, 1861 **''

Ervilia castanea ''Ervilia'' is a genus of marine clams in the family Semelidae. Species *''Ervilia bisculpta ''Ervilia'' is a genus of marine clams in the family Semelidae The Semelidae are a family of saltwater clams, marine bivalve molluscs ...

'' ( Montagu, 1803) **''

Ervilia concentrica ''Ervilia'' is a genus of marine clams in the family Semelidae. Species *''Ervilia bisculpta'' Gould, 1861 *''Ervilia castanea ''Ervilia'' is a genus of marine clams in the family Semelidae. Species *''Ervilia bisculpta ''E ...

'' (Holmes, 1860) **''

Ervilia nitens ''Ervilia'' is a genus of marine clams in the family Semelidae. Species *''Ervilia bisculpta'' Gould, 1861 *''Ervilia castanea'' ( Montagu, 1803) *''Ervilia concentrica ''Ervilia'' is a genus of marine clams in the family Semelidae. ...

'' (Montagu, 1808) **''

Ervilia producta ''Ervilia'' is a genus of marine clams in the family Semelidae. Species *''Ervilia bisculpta'' Gould, 1861 *''Ervilia castanea'' ( Montagu, 1803) *''Ervilia concentrica'' (Holmes, 1860) *''Ervilia nitens ''Ervilia'' is a genus of mar ...

'' Odhner, 1922 **''

Ervilia purpurea ''Ervilia'' is a genus of marine clams in the family Semelidae. Species *''Ervilia bisculpta'' Gould, 1861 *''Ervilia castanea'' ( Montagu, 1803) *''Ervilia concentrica'' (Holmes, 1860) *''Ervilia nitens'' (Montagu, 1808) *''Ervilia produc ...

'' (Smith, 1906) **''

Ervilia scaliola ''Ervilia'' is a genus of marine clams in the family Semelidae. Species *''Ervilia bisculpta'' Gould, 1861 *''Ervilia castanea'' ( Montagu, 1803) *''Ervilia concentrica'' (Holmes, 1860) *''Ervilia nitens'' (Montagu, 1808) *''Ervilia produc ...

'' *'' Iacra'' H. Adams & A. Adams, 1856 *'' Leptomya'' A. Adams, 1864 **'' Leptomya retiara aucklandica'' Powell **'' Leptomya retiara retiara'' ( Hutton, 1885) *'' Leptomyaria'' Habe, 1960 *'' Lonoa'' Dall, Bartsch & Rehder, 1938 *'' Montrouzieria'' Souverbie, 1863 *'' Rochefortina'' Dall, 1924 *''

Scrobicularia ''Scrobicularia'' is a genus of bivalve mollusc belonging to the family Semelidae. It is sometimes placed in its own family, Scrobicularidae. Species There are two recognised species: *'' Scrobicularia cottardi'' (Payraudeau, 1826) *''Scrobicula ...

'' Schumacher, 1815 **'' Scrobicularia plana'' – Peppery furrow shell *''

Semele Semele (; Ancient Greek: Σεμέλη ), in Greek mythology, was the youngest daughter of Cadmus and Harmonia, and the mother of Dionysus by Zeus in one of his many origin myths. Certain elements of the cult of Dionysus and Semele came from ...

'' Schumacher, 1817 **'' Semele bellastriata'' (

, 1837) **'' Semele brambleyae'' ( Powell, 1967) **''

Semele decisa Semele (; Ancient Greek: Σεμέλη ), in Greek mythology, was the youngest daughter of Cadmus and Harmonia, and the mother of Dionysus by Zeus in one of his many origin myths. Certain elements of the cult of Dionysus and Semele came fro ...

'' (

, 1837) **''

Semele incongrua Semele (; Ancient Greek: Σεμέλη ), in Greek mythology, was the youngest daughter of Cadmus and Harmonia, and the mother of Dionysus by Zeus in one of his many origin myths. Certain elements of the cult of Dionysus and Semele came from the ...

Carpenter Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. Carpenters tra ...

, 1864 **''

Semele proficua Semele (; Ancient Greek: Σεμέλη ), in Greek mythology, was the youngest daughter of Cadmus and Harmonia, and the mother of Dionysus by Zeus in one of his many origin myths. Certain elements of the cult of Dionysus and Semele came fro ...

'' (Pulteney, 1799) **'' Semele pulchra'' (G. B. Sowerby I, 1832) **'' Semele purpurascens'' ( Gmelin, 1791) **''

Semele rubicola Semele (; Ancient Greek: Σεμέλη ), in Greek mythology, was the youngest daughter of Cadmus and Harmonia (Greek goddess), Harmonia, and the mother of Dionysus by Zeus in one of his many origin myths. Certain elements of the cult of Dionysu ...

, 1915 **''

Semele rubropicta Semele (; Ancient Greek: Σεμέλη ), in Greek mythology, was the youngest daughter of Cadmus and Harmonia, and the mother of Dionysus by Zeus in one of his many origin myths. Certain elements of the cult of Dionysus and Semele came from the ...

, 1871 **''

Semele rupicola Semele (; Ancient Greek: Σεμέλη ), in Greek mythology, was the youngest daughter of Cadmus and Harmonia, and the mother of Dionysus by Zeus in one of his many origin myths. Certain elements of the cult of Dionysus and Semele came fro ...

, 1915 **''

Semele venusta Semele (; Ancient Greek: Σεμέλη ), in Greek mythology, was the youngest daughter of Cadmus and Harmonia, and the mother of Dionysus by Zeus in one of his many origin myths. Certain elements of the cult of Dionysus and Semele came from the ...

'' ( Reeve, 1853) *'' Semelina''

, 1900 **'' Semelina nuculoides'' (

, 1841) *''† Septeuilia'' Cossmann, 1913 *'' Souleyetia'' Récluz, 1869 *''

Theora Theora is a free lossy video compression format. It is developed by the Xiph.Org Foundation and distributed without licensing fees alongside their other free and open media projects, including the Vorbis audio format and the Ogg container ...

'' H. Adams and A. Adams, 1856 **''

Theora lubrica ''Theora lubrica'' is a bivalve mollusc endemic to the Northwest Pacific, including northern Japan, southern Russia and Hong Kong. It was introduced into harbours around the North Island of New Zealand around 1972, and has since spread to the up ...

Gould Gould may refer to: People * Gould (name), a surname Places United States * Gould, Arkansas, a city * Gould, Colorado, an unincorporated community * Gould, Ohio, an unincorporated community * Gould, Oklahoma, a town * Gould, West Virginia, ...

, 1861 **''

Theora mesopotamica ''Theora mesopotamica'' is a species of Seawater, saltwater and brackish water clam, a bivalve mollusk in the family Semelidae. This species is known from the northwestern end of the Persian Gulf, and from subfossil remains in brackish deposits i ...

'' Annandale 1918 *'' Thyellisca'' H. E. Vokes, 1956

References

* Powell A. W. B., ''New Zealand Mollusca'', William Collins Publishers Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand 1979 *http://gni.globalnames.org/data_sources/30?page=1&search_term=ns%3AERV* {{Taxonbar, from=Q3016438 Bivalve families Taxa named by Ferdinand Stoliczka