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Arca aquila (Heilprin, 1886)

Arca aquila
Arca aquila

Scientific Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Bivalvia
Order: Arcida
Family: Arcidae
Genus: Arca
Species: Arca aquila (Heilprin, 1886)

Information

Geological Range

Quaternary

Pleistocene

Neogene

Pliocene

Paleogeographic Distribution

Florida

Stratigraphic Occurrences

Bermont Formation [Questionable/rare]
Caloosahatchee Formation [Common]
Tamiami Formation (Pinecrest Beds) [Common]

Remarks

Common name: n/a

Synonymy: n/a

Type specimen, locality, and stratum: n/a

Other voucher specimens: n/a

Descriptions:

Original Description (from Heilprin, 1886, p. 97-98):

“Shell (known only by its left valve) elongated, rectangular, winged, profoundly sulcated on the posterior slope; anterior border vertical, straight; basal line slightly sinuous beyond the middle; posterior border deeply emarginated; hinge-line straight, of nearly equal length with the base; teeth very numerous, gradually increasing in size towards either end, where they are markedly oblique; hinge-area broad, obscurely furrowed in longitudinal lines; beak moderately elevated, incurved, the apex directed backward; surface of the shell radiately ribbed, the ribs sinuous, beaded especially on the anterior portion of the shell, where they are separated by an intermediate fine line becoming obsolete in the posterior sulcus and on the wing, where they are represented by two pairs of lines; lines of growth prominent towards the base and on the wing; basal margin crenulated.

Length, 1.25 inches; height, from base to hinge-line, .5 inch.

This winged ark is at once distinguished from A. aviculaeformis (v. post.) by the absence of the anterior rostrum and its rectangular form. The last character, in addition to differences in the ornamentation, also serves to distinguish it from the Miocene Arca incilc, which resembles it somewhat in the pterination of the posterior slope.”

Measurements: n/a

Other remarks: n/a

References: n/a

Online resources:

WoRMS record 1548801

Page history:

Some of the content on this page was originally published on the Neogene Atlas of Ancient Life on July 16, 2014. It was developed by Jonathan R. Hendricks and colleagues and migrated here in 2026.

This page was last modified on October 28, 2026 by Jonathan R. Hendricks.

Media

Images

Arca aquila from the Pleistocene (formation unknown) of Glades County, Florida (UF 47029).
Arca aquila from the Pleistocene (formation unknown) of Glades County, Florida (UF 47029).
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Specimen of Arca aquila figured by Heilprin (1886, pl. , fig. 31); 1.25 in. in length.
Specimen of Arca aquila figured by Heilprin (1886, pl. , fig. 31); 1.25 in. in length.
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