Cheyenne Helman

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The Tan Riffleshell The Tan Riffleshell is an endangered species. Mollusca Classification The Tan Riffleshell is classified as a Mollusca. It’s class is Bivalvia

Bivolvia Characteristics of the phylum:

Characteristics of the class:

Mollusca Phylum: There are over 50,000 living species in this group, which makes this the most diverse group of animals on the planet. Animals of the Mollusca Phylum are normally covered with a hard exoskeleton.

Bivalvia Class- In the Bivalvia Class, there are more than 30,000 species. They normally have two part shells and have symmetrical symmetry. Bivalvia can live in both freshwater and salt water.

Close Relatives: The Tan Riffleshell is closely related to the Oyster Mussel. Both of these are fresh water species of the class Bivalvia.

Locations and Habitats on Earth: The Tan Riffleshell is known to appear in fresh water areas in Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia. The Tan Riffleshell inhabits sand and gravel substrates and is commonly found in headwaters, riffles , and shoals.

Routines: The Tan Riffleshell eats food daily. By eating this food, the mussel filters the water making it more clear.

Cheyenne Helman Period 7

More Information... • Place on the food chain- The Tan Riffleshell mussel is a secondary consumer because they are known to eat plankton. Some of these freshwater mussels eat phythoplankton and others eat zoo plankton. By eating this, it makes the mussels secondary consumers because plankton is an organism that eats other organisms.

• Reasons for endangerment- Tan Riffleshell mussels originally became endangered from degraded water containing mine acid and municipal wastes. Pollution is also believed to have endangered this species. • Laws protecting these species- There is no speciif law protecting these mussels but when they were discovered to be endangered, a recovery plan was issued in1984 to help increase their population.

References: http://ecos.fws.gov/docs/life_histories/ F010.html http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/ summary_0193-8055_ITM

• Adaptation- The Tan Riffleshell burries itself in the sand or gravel bottom for protection. It does this by using the edge of its curved shell to dig into the sand. • Reproduction- The Tan Riffleshell reproduces sexually. The male releases the sperm into the water and the female fertilizes the eggs by taking the sperm through her gills. • Other Information- The Tan Riffleshell is a medium sized freshwater mussel. It is approximately 7cm in size with a brown or yellow colored shell that contains green rays shooting horizontally across the shell.

The Tan Riffleshell

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