The Semelidae are a family of saltwater clams, marine bivalve molluscs in the order Veneroida, the venus shells and their allies.
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 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.
Genera of Semelidae (with some notable species also listed) include:
Abra Lamarck, 1818Abra aequalis (Say, 1822)Abra alba (Wood W., 1802)Abra californica Kundsen, 1970Abra lioica (Dall, 1881)Abra longicallis Sacchi, 1836Abra nitida (O. F. Mueller, 1776)Abra pacifica Dall, 1915Abra prismaticaAbra profundorum E. A. Smith, 1885Abra tenuis (Montagu, 1818)Abra tepocana Dall, 1915Cumingia G. B. Sowerby I, 1833Cumingia californica Conrad, 1837Cumingia coarctata G. B. Sowerby I, 1833Cumingia tellinoides (Conrad, 1831)Ervilia Turton, 1822Ervilia bisculpta Gould, 1861Ervilia castanea (Montagu, 1803)Ervilia concentrica (Holmes, 1860)Ervilia nitens (Montagu, 1808)Ervilia producta Odhner, 1922Ervilia purpurea (Smith, 1906)Ervilia scaliolaLeptomya A. Adams, 1864Leptomya retiara aucklandica PowellLeptomya retiara retiara (Hutton, 1885)Scrobicularia Schumacher, 1815Scrobicularia plana - Peppery furrow shellSemele Schumacher, 1817Semele bellastriata (Conrad, 1837)Semele brambleyae (Powell, 1967)Semele decisa (Conrad, 1837)Semele incongrua Carpenter, 1864Semele proficua (Pulteney, 1799)Semele pulchra (G. B. Sowerby I, 1832)Semele purpurascens (Gmelin, 1791)Semele rubicola Dall, 1915Semele rubropicta Dall, 1871Semele rupicola Dall, 1915Semele venusta (Reeve, 1853)Semelina Dall, 1900Semelina nuculoides (Conrad, 1841)Theora H. Adams and A. Adams, 1856Theora lubrica Gould, 1861Theora mesopotamica Annandale 1918
