Bivalvia is a class of marine and freshwater molluscs that have laterally compressed bodies enclosed by a shell consisting of two hinged parts. They include the clams, oysters, cockles, mussels, scallops, and numerous other families that live in saltwater and freshwater. Bivalves have long been a part of the diet of coastal and riparian human populations.
About Bivalvia in brief
Bivalvia is a class of marine and freshwater molluscs that have laterally compressed bodies enclosed by a shell consisting of two hinged parts. They include the clams, oysters, cockles, mussels, scallops, and numerous other families that live in saltwater and freshwater. Bivalves have long been a part of the diet of coastal and riparian human populations. Oysters were cultured in ponds by the Romans, and mariculture has more recently become an important source of bivalves for food. The shell of a bivalve is composed of two, usually similar, parts called valves. These are joined together along one edge by a flexible ligament that, usually in conjunction with interlocking \”teeth\” on each of the valves, forms the hinge. This arrangement allows the shell to be opened and closed without the two halves detaching. The name ‘bivalve’ is derived from the Latin bis, meaning ‘two’, and valvae, meaning leaves of a door. The total number of known living species is about 9,200. There are about 8,000 species, combined in four subclasses and 99 families with 1,100 genera. The largest recent marine families are the Veneridae, with more than 680 species, and the Tellinidae and Lucinidae, each with over 500 species. The freshwater bivalvy families include seven families, the largest of which are the Unionidae,. with about 700 species.
Some, such as the cockles,. have shells that are nearly globular; cockles can jump by bending and straightening their foot. The shipworms bore into wood, clay, or stone and live inside these substances. The umbo is the oldest portion of the shell, with extra material gradually being laid down along the margins on the opposite side. The hinge or line is the opposite of the ventral region, where the lower margin is curved and the anterior region is curved by the protuberance usually surrounding the beak. Near the hinge is the dorsal region, often a rounded, knob-like knob, often rounded, and usually a rounded knob or knob, usually a knob, or a knob. Teredated shells, but the Teredinidae have greatly elongated bodies, but their shell valves are reduced and restricted to the anterior end of the body, where they function as tunnels through the animal to dig tunnels through wood or stone. The majority of species do not exceed 10 cm in length. Adult shell sizes of species vary from fractions of a millimetre to over a metre in length, but most of species don’t exceed 10cm. Bivalve species are used in craftwork, and in the manufacture of jewellery and buttons. They have also been used in the biocontrol of pollution, and are a source of natural pearls in the UK and the U.S. The most common source of pearls is pearl oysters.
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This page is based on the article Bivalvia published in Wikipedia (as of Dec. 02, 2020) and was automatically summarized using artificial intelligence.
