Veneridae

Veneridae
Venus verrucosa
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Subkingdom:	Metazoa
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Bivalvia
Subclass:	Heterodonta
Order:	Veneroida
Superfamily:	Veneroidea
Family:	Veneridae Rafinesque, 1815
Genera
See text.

The Veneridae or venerids, also known as venus clams, are a large family of marine bivalve molluscs.

Many of the most important edible species of Veneridae are commonly known simply as clams, and they make up a significant part of the world fishery of edible bivalves. Venerids include some well known species such as the hard clam or quahog, Mercenaria mercenaria.

There are over 500 living species of venerid. Their classification has been controversial at least since the 1930s. The most used classification is that of Keen (1969) which recognises 12 subfamilies, listed below. Some common species have been moved between genera (including genera in different subfamilies) because of repeated attempts to bring a more valid organization to the classification or taxonomy of the family, therefore changes in the generic name of species are frequently encountered.

The characters used for classifying this group still tend to be superficial and to focus on external features, especially those of the shell, so further reclassification is to be expected as current research in molecular systematics bears fruit.

Subfamilies according to Keen (1969)

• Chioninae
• Circinae
• Clementinae
• Cyclinae
• Dosiniinae
• Gemminae
• Meretricinae
• Pitarinae
• Samaranginae
• Sunettinae
• Vapetinae
• Venerinae

List of genera

(may be incomplete)

• Agriopoma Dall, 1902
• Amiantis Carpenter, 1884
• Anomalocardia Schumacher, 1817
• Austrovenus Finlay,1927
• Bassina Jukes-Browne, 1914
• Callista Poli, 1791
• Chamelea Morch, 1853
• Chione Megerle von Mühlfeld, 1811
• Chionista Keen, 1958
• Circomphalus Klein, 1853
• Clausinella J. E. Gray, 1851
• Compsomyax Stewart, 1930
• Cyclinella Dall, 1902
• Dosinia Scopoli, 1777
• Gafrarium Roding, 1798
• Gemma Deshayes, 1853
• Globivenus Coen, 1934
• Gouldia C. B. Adams, 1847
• Humilaria Grant and Gale, 1931
• Irus Schmidt, 1818
• Irusella Hertlein and Grant, 1972
• Liocyma Dall, 1870
• Lirophora Conrad, 1883
• Macrocallista Meek, 1876
• Mercenaria Schumacher, 1817
• Nutricola Bernard, 1982
• Parastarte Conrad, 1862
• Periglypta Jukes-Browne, 1914
• Pitar Römer, 1857
• Protothaca Dall, 1902
• Psephidia Dall, 1902
• Puberella Fischer-Piette and Vukadinovic, 1977
• Saxidomus Conrad, 1837
• Tapes Muhlfeld, 1811
• Tawera Marwick, 1927
• Timoclea Brown, 1827
• Tivela Link, 1807
• Transennella Dall, 1883
• Venerupis Lamarck, 1818
• Ventricolaria Keen, 1954
• Venus Linnaeus, 1758

References

• Keen, A. M. (1969). Superfamily Veneracea. pp. 670-690, in: Leslie Reginald Cox et al., Part N [Bivalvia], Mollusca 6, vols. 1 and 2: xxxvii + 952 pp. Part of Raymond C. Moore, ed., Treatise on invertebrate paleontology. Lawrence, Kansas (Geological Society of America & University of Kansas).
• Powell A. W. B., New Zealand Mollusca, William Collins Publishers Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand 1979 ISBN 0-00-216906-1

External links

• Taxonomy on the half shell A major project of the Chicago Field Museum of Natural History and the American Museum of Natural History on Venerid classification
• Bibliography of venerid taxonomy