Atrina fragilis
Atrina fragilis, the fan mussel, is a species of large saltwater clam, a marine bivalve mollusc in the family Pinnidae, the pen shells.
| Fan mussel | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Bivalvia |
| Order: | Pteriida |
| Family: | Pinnidae |
| Genus: | Atrina |
| Species: | A. fragilis |
| Binomial name | |
| Atrina fragilis (Pennant, 1777) | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Pinna fragilis | |
The fan mussel, Atrina fragilis is one of the largest (30 to 48 cm long) and rarest bivalve molluscs occurring in northern European waters and the only member of the family Pinnidae to inhabit UK waters. It is one of the largest (30 to 48 cm long) European bivalve molluscs. It is one of the rarest species of marine mollusc in the United Kingdom - so rare that surveys of nearly 9,000 sites around Britain between 1987 and 1998 found none. The fan mussel has a larval stage that is very difficult to identify due to the rarity of the specimen. Atrina fragilis is greatly affected by the industrialization of the fishing industry and it has impacted the distribution of the rare species.