North Atlantic Register of Marine Species (NARMS)

NARMS taxon details

Mya arenaria Linnaeus, 1758

AphiaID

140430 (urn:lsid:marinespecies.org:taxname:140430)

Classification

Status

accepted

Rank

Species

Parent

Mya Linnaeus, 1758

Original name

Mya arenaria Linnaeus, 1758

Synonymised names

Mya arenaria var. ovata A. S. Jensen, 1900 · unaccepted (synonym)

Mya declivis Pennant, 1777 · unaccepted

Mya elongata Locard, 1886 · unaccepted

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Variety Mya arenaria var. ovata A. S. Jensen, 1900 accepted as Mya arenaria Linnaeus, 1758 (synonym)

Environment

marine, ~~brackish~~, ~~fresh~~, ~~terrestrial~~

Fossil range

recent + fossil

Original description

Linnaeus, C. (1758). Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. Laurentii Salvii. Holmiae [Stockholm]. [iii] + 824 pp. , available online at https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/726886
page(s): 670 [details] Available for editors

Taxonomic citation

MolluscaBase eds. (2025). MolluscaBase. Mya arenaria Linnaeus, 1758. Accessed through: Costello, M.J.; Bouchet, P.; Boxshall, G.; Arvanitidis, C.; Appeltans, W. (2025) European Register of Marine Species at: https://www.vliz.be/vmdcdata/narms/narms.php?p=taxdetails&id=140430 on 2026-06-06

Regional species database citation

Costello, M.J.; Bouchet, P.; Boxshall, G.; Arvanitidis, C.; Appeltans, W. (2026). European Register of Marine Species. Mya arenaria Linnaeus, 1758. Accessed at: https://vliz.be/vmdcdata/narms/narms.php?p=taxdetails&id=140430 on 2026-06-06

Taxonomic edit history

Date

action

2004-12-21 15:54:05Z

created

Gofas, Serge

2024-08-31 16:17:50Z

changed

Vinarski, Maxim

2024-10-01 17:41:30Z

changed

Dekker, Henk

[taxonomic tree]

[clear cache]

original description Linnaeus, C. (1758). Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. Laurentii Salvii. Holmiae [Stockholm]. [iii] + 824 pp. , available online at https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/726886
page(s): 670 [details] Available for editors

original description (of Mya declivis Pennant, 1777) Pennant, T. (1777). British Zoology, vol. IV. Crustacea. Mollusca. Testacea. London. i-viii, 1-154, pls. 1-93., available online at http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/127011
page(s): Ed. 4, 4: 66 [details]

original description (of Mya elongata Locard, 1886) Locard, A. (1886). Prodrome de malacologie française. Catalogue général des mollusques vivants de France. Mollusques marins. Lyon: H. Georg & Paris: Baillière. x + 778 pp. , available online at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/10831012
page(s): 383, 586-587 [details]

original description (of Mya arenaria var. ovata A. S. Jensen, 1900) Jensen A.S. (1900). Om levninger av grundtvandsdyr paa store havdyb mellem Jan Mayen og Island.. Videnskablige Meddelelser fra den Naturhistoriske Forening i Köbenhavn 1900: 229-239., available online at https://doi.org/10.1080/11035890009446910 [details]

context source (Introduced species) Katsanevakis, S.; Bogucarskis, K.; Gatto, F.; Vandekerkhove, J.; Deriu, I.; Cardoso A.S. (2012). Building the European Alien Species Information Network (EASIN): a novel approach for the exploration of distributed alien species data. BioInvasions Records. 1: 235-245., available online at http://easin.jrc.ec.europa.eu [details] Available for editors

context source (HKRMS) City University of Hong Kong. (2010). Provision of Services for Species Identification and Data Analysis of Epibenthic Organisms from Hong Kong Water. Final report. Environmental Protection Department. Department of Biology and Chemistry, City University [details]

context source (Schelde) Maris, T., O. Beauchard, S. Van Damme, E. Van den Bergh, S. Wijnhoven & P. Meire. (2013). Referentiematrices en Ecotoopoppervlaktes Annex bij de Evaluatiemethodiek Schelde-estuarium Studie naar “Ecotoopoppervlaktes en intactness index”. [Reference matrices and Ecotope areas Annex to the Evaluation methodology Scheldt estuary Study on “Ecotope areas and intactness index”. Monitor Taskforce Publication Series, 2013-01. NIOZ: Yerseke. 35 pp. (look up in IMIS) [details]

context source (BeRMS 2020) Bio-environmental research group; Institute of Agricultural and Fisheries research (ILVO), Belgium; (2016): Macrobenthos monitoring in function of dredge disposal monitoring in the Belgian part of the North Sea. [details]

context source (Bermuda) Jensen, R. H. (1997). A Checklist and Bibliography of the Marine Molluscs of Bermuda. Unp. , 547 pp [details]

basis of record Gofas, S.; Le Renard, J.; Bouchet, P. (2001). Mollusca. in: Costello, M.J. et al. (eds), European Register of Marine Species: a check-list of the marine species in Europe and a bibliography of guides to their identification. Patrimoines Naturels. 50: 180-213., available online at http://www.vliz.be/imisdocs/publications/ocrd/254404.pdf [details]

additional source Abbott, R. T. (1974). American seashells. The marine Mollusca of the Atlantic and Pacific coast of North America. ed. 2. Van Nostrand, New York. 663 pp., 24 pls. [October 1974]. (look up in IMIS) [details]

additional source Zenetos, A., M.E. Cinar, M.A. Pancucci-Papadopoulou, J.G. Harmelin, G. Furnari, F. Andaloro, N. Bellou, N. Streftaris & H. Zibrowius. (2005). Annotated list of marine alien species in the Mediterranean with records of the worst invasive species. Mediterranean Marine Science. 6 (2): 63-118., available online at https://www.researchgate.net/publication/273213810_Annotated_list_of_marine_alien_species_in_the_Mediterranean_with_records_of_the_worst_invasive_species [details] Available for editors

additional source Huber, M. (2010). Compendium of bivalves. A full-color guide to 3,300 of the world's marine bivalves. A status on Bivalvia after 250 years of research. Hackenheim: ConchBooks. 901 pp., 1 CD-ROM. (look up in IMIS) [details]

additional source Zhang J.L., Xu F.S. & Liu J.Y. (2012) The Myidae (Mollusca, Bivalvia) from Chinese waters with description of a new species. Zootaxa 3383: 39–60. [Published 10 July 2012], available online at http://www.mapress.com/zootaxa/2012/2/zt03383p060.pdf [details]

additional source Keep, J. (1891). Mollusks of the San Francisco markets. The Nautilus. 4(9): 97-100., available online at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/12596720
page(s): 99 [details]

additional source Morse, E. S. (1922). An abnormal shell of Mya arenaria. The Nautilus. 36(1): 28-30., available online at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/8279826 [details]

additional source Blake, J. H. (1925). An abnormal clam. The Nautilus. 38(3): 89-90, 2 text-figures., available online at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/8525070 [details]

additional source Vles, F. (1909). Monographie sommaire de la Mye (Mya arenaria Linné,1767). Memoires de la Societe Zoologique de France. 22: 90-142., available online at https://www.vliz.be/imisdocs/publications/140676.pdf [details]

additional source Russell, H. D. (1952). The Duxbury Bay 1950 set of Mya arenaria L. The Nautilus. 66(1): 7-10, fig. 1., available online at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/8523304 [details]

additional source Clench, W. J. (1961). A record size for Mya arenaria. The Nautilus. 74(3): 122., available online at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/8524003 [details]

additional source Tubiash, H. S., Shuster, C. N., Jr. & Couch, J. A. (1968). Anomalous siphons in two species of bivalve mollusks. The Nautilus. 81(4): 123-125, figs. 1-3., available online at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/8528148 [details]

additional source Ropes, J. W. (1982). Hermaphroditism, sexuality and sex ratio in the surf clam, Spisula solidissima, and the soft-shell clam, Mya arenaria. The Nautilus. 96(1): 141-146, fig. 1., available online at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/8497706 [details]

additional source Appeldoorn, R. S. (1984). Sex ratio in the soft-shell clam, Mya arenaria. The Nautilus. 98(2): 61-63., available online at https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/8277086 [details]

Present

Inaccurate

Introduced: alien

Containing type locality

Definitions

Language	Name
Dutch	strandgaper	[details]
English	softshell clamsoftshellsand gaper	[details]
French	mye des sablesmyeclauquebec de jar	[details]
German	SandmuschelKlaffmuschel	[details]