The Veneridae or venerids are a family of marine bivalve molluscs. Many of them are commonly known as clams, and they make up a significant part of the world fishery of clams. They include some well known species such as the hard clam or quahog, Mercenaria mercenaria.

There are over 500 living species of venerid. Their classification has been controversial at least since the 1930s. The most used classification is that of Keen (1969) which recognises 12 subfamilies, listed below. Some common species have been moved between genera, including genera in different subfamilies, by repeated attempts to bring order to the classification of the family, so changes in systematic name are frequently encountered. The characters used for classifying the group still tend to be superficial and to focus on external features especially those of the shell, so further reclassification is to be expected as current research in molecular systematics bears fruit.

Subfamilies according to Keen (1969)

• Chioninae
• Circinae
• Clementinae
• Cyclinae
• Dosiniinae
• Gemminae
• Meretricinae
• Pitarinae
• Samaranginae
• Sunettinae
• Tapetinae
• Venerinae

List of genera

• ''Agriopoma Dall, 1902
• Amiantis Carpenter, 1884
• Anomalocardia Schumacher, 1817
• Callista Poli, 1791
• Chamelea Morch, 1853
• Chione Megerle von Mühlfeld, 1811
• Chionista Keen, 1958
• Circomphalus Klein, 1853
• Clausinella J. E. Gray, 1851
• Compsomyax Stewart, 1930
• Cyclinella Dall, 1902
• Dosinia Scopoli, 1777
• Gafrarium Roding, 1798
• Gemma Deshayes, 1853
• Globivenus Coen, 1934
• Gouldia C. B. Adams, 1847
• Humilaria Grant and Gale, 1931
• Irus Schmidt, 1818
• Irusella Hertlein and Grant, 1972
• Liocyma Dall, 1870
• Lirophora Conrad, 1883
• Macrocallista Meek, 1876
• Mercenaria Schumacher, 1817
• Nutricola Bernard, 1982
• Parastarte Conrad, 1862
• Periglypta Jukes-Browne, 1914
• Pitar Römer, 1857
• Protothaca Dall, 1902
• Psephidia Dall, 1902
• Puberella Fischer-Piette and Vukadinovic, 1977
• Saxidomus Conrad, 1837
• Tapes Muhlfeld, 1811
• Timoclea Brown, 1827
• Tivela Link, 1807
• Transennella Dall, 1883
• Venerupis Lamarck, 1818
• Ventricolaria Keen, 1954
• Venus Linnaeus, 1758

References

• Keen, A. M. (1969). Superfamily Veneracea. pp. 670-690, in: Leslie Reginald Cox et al., Part N ^*, Mollusca 6, vols. 1 and 2: xxxvii + 952 pp. Part of Raymond C. Moore, ed., Treatise on invertebrate paleontology. Lawrence, Kansas (Geological Society of America & University of Kansas).

External links

• Taxonomy on the half shell A major project of the Chicago Field Museum of Natural History and the American Museum of Natural History on Venerid classification
• Bibliography of venerid taxonomy

Bivalves

Venusmuscheln | Veneridae | Veneridae