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Page last updated
Wed 06 Mar 2024

The Freshwater Mussels (Unionoida) of the World (and other less consequential bivalves)

FM(U)otW(aolcb) is the web version of the MUSSEL Project Database. Follow the links to browse the data or use the custom Google search field. Either way, you win!

For each taxon, information is provided regarding habitat, horizon (Recent unless otherwise listed), and diversity. We are actively working on the Recent freshwater mussels, and those are the taxa for which the data are most complete. For other Recent freshwater bivalves, the information largely follows Graf (2013). For other taxa (e.g., marine, fossil), any content is largely incidental.

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Bivalvia

class BIVALVIA

order UNIONOIDA: 992 Recent species.
These are the freshwater mussels. There are six modern families, restricted entirely to fresh waters. In addition, there are several fossil families.
4 superfamilies, 2 families, 2 genera
Distribution: Afrotropics, Australasia, Central America, East Asia, North America, North Eurasia, South America.

order SPHAERIOIDA: 272 Recent species.
The Sphaeriidae is the second-most species-rich radition of bivalves into inland habitats.
1 family
Distribution: Afrotropics, Australasia, Central America, East Asia, North America, North Eurasia, South America.

order VENEROIDA: 200 Recent species.
The Cyrenidae represents the most significant radition of veneroids into fresh waters, but there are also a number of freshwater species in primarily marine families.
3 superfamilies, 8 families
Distribution: Afrotropics, Australasia, Central America, East Asia, North America, North Eurasia, South America.

order MYOIDA: 52 Recent species.
Myoids are also primarily marine bivalves, but there are freshwater species as well, including species of the Dreissenidae.
6 families
Distribution: Afrotropics, Australasia, Central America, East Asia, North America, North Eurasia, South America.

order MYTILOIDA: 38 Recent species.
There are a few secondarily freshwater species in this order, but otherwise mytiloids are primarily marine.
1 family
Distribution: Australasia, Central America, East Asia, North America, North Eurasia, South America.

order CARDIOIDA: 31 Recent species.
Cardioids are mostly marine, with a minor radition into freshened waters.
1 superfamily, 1 family
Distribution: North Eurasia.

order TRIGONIOIDA: not freshwater, 8 Recent species.
1 family

order ARCOIDA Lamarck, 1809: 5 Recent species.
Arcoids are primarily marine. However, one family is represented in fresh waters.
1 family
Distribution: East Asia.

order ANOMALODESMATA: 1 Recent species.
1 family
Distribution: South America.

genus Peregrinoconcha Chen & Lan, 1976: fossil only.
1 generic synonym | 2 valid species | cladomics

order ARCHANODONTIDAE Modell, 1957: fossil only.
2 genera

order MODIOMORPHOIDEA Miller, 1877: fossil only.
1 family

order PECTINOIDA: not freshwater, fossil only.
An order of bivalves that has freshwater species or at least species attributed to freshwater clades.
1 superfamily

order PTERIOIDA: fossil only.
There are not really any freshwater pterioids, but at least one fossil family has been assigned to a freshwater clade.
1 superfamily

Page updated: 16:23:02 Wed 06 Mar 2024

 
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