Scientific name Mercenaria Order Veneroida | Rank Genus | |
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Similar Hard clam, Bivalvia, Molluscs, Eastern oyster, Veneridae | ||
Animal calls oryctolagus cuniculus sphodromantis viridis mercenaria mercenaria
Mercenaria is a genus of edible saltwater clams, marine bivalve molluscs in the family Veneridae, the Venus clams.
Contents
- Animal calls oryctolagus cuniculus sphodromantis viridis mercenaria mercenaria
- Plaza la mercenaria
- Species
- Fossils species
- References
The genus Mercenaria includes the quahogs, Mercenaria mercenaria, the northern quahog or hard clam, and M. campechiensis, the southern quahog. These two species commonly hybridise where their ranges overlap. Mercenaria mercenaria is further subdivided in the marketplace and thence in the kitchen by size: the largest being the quahog or chowder clam, then smaller cherrystones, and smallest littlenecks; some markets also differentiate top necks which are intermediate in size between cherrystones and littlenecks. The smaller clams are eaten raw throughout New England, New York, and New Jersey; the larger clams are more suited for cooking.
Other species within the genus include the venus clam M. stimpsoni found in north Pacific waters.
All these species were formerly placed in the related genus Venus.
Plaza la mercenaria
Species
The World Register of Marine Species accepts the following extant species as valid:
Fossils species
Several other species are known only from fossils. These mollusk lived from Oligocene to Quaternary (from 23.03 to 0.0 Ma). Fossil shells have been found in the sediments of Russia, Japan, Indonesia, United States and Brazil.
