Synopses & Reviews
Located where the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean Sea converge, the Florida Keys are distinctive for their rich and varied marine fauna. The Keys are home to nearly sixty taxonomic families of bivalves such as clams and mussels--roughly half the world's bivalve family diversity. The first in a series of three volumes on the molluscan fauna of the Keys and adjacent regions, Seashells of Southern Florida: Bivalves provides a comprehensive treatment of these bivalves, and also serves as a comparative anatomical guide to bivalve diversity worldwide.
Paula Mikkelsen and Rüdiger Bieler cover more than three hundred species of bivalves, including clams, scallops, oysters, mussels, shipworms, jewel boxes, tellins, and many lesser-known groups. For each family they select an exemplar species and illustrate its shell and anatomical features in detail. They describe habitat and other relevant information, and accompany each species account with high-resolution shell photographs of other family members. Text and images combine to present species--to family-level characteristics in a complete way never before seen. The book includes fifteen hundred mostly color photographs and images of shells, underwater habitats, bivalves in situ, original anatomical and hinge drawings, scanning electron micrographs, and unique transparent--shell illustrations with major organ systems color-coded and clearly shown. Seashells of Southern Florida: Bivalves is the most complete guide to subtropical bivalves available. It is an essential tool for students and teachers of molluscan diversity and systematics, and an indispensable identification guide for collectors, scuba divers, naturalists, environmental consultants, and natural-resource managers.
Review
This book provides the most thorough treatment of living mollusks in this region ever written. It provides anatomical details of many species for which the anatomy had not been described previously. In addition to serving as an identification guide, it focuses on mollusks as living organisms, providing more biological information than previous faunal guides for western Atlantic marine mollusks.
Review
"All marine bivalve enthusiasts should purchase this book, regardless of their home port. The anatomical drawings, illustrated glossary and good photographs will be useful worldwide. In addition, I would strongly recommend this book to all malacologists and shell collectors. It just might entice them to take the plunge into the exciting, if not tumultuous, world of bivalve taxonomy."--Paul Valentich-Scott, The Festivus
Review
This handsome volume, the first of a projected three-volume work on the mollusks of the Florida Keys, sets an admirable precedent. Mikkelsen and Rudiger have probably created the best illustrated and most detailed of any marine identification work so far published...[T]his is an important reference work that belongs in the library of any institution that offers courses in marine biology. -- J.C. Briggs, Choice All marine bivalve enthusiasts should purchase this book, regardless of their home port. The anatomical drawings, illustrated glossary and good photographs will be useful worldwide. In addition, I would strongly recommend this book to all malacologists and shell collectors. It just might entice them to take the plunge into the exciting, if not tumultuous, world of bivalve taxonomy. -- Paul Valentich-Scott, The Festivus
Review
"This handsome volume, the first of a projected three-volume work on the mollusks of the Florida Keys, sets an admirable precedent. Mikkelsen and Rudiger have probably created the best illustrated and most detailed of any marine identification work so far published...[T]his is an important reference work that belongs in the library of any institution that offers courses in marine biology."--J.C. Briggs, Choice
Synopsis
Located where the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean Sea converge, the Florida Keys are distinctive for their rich and varied marine fauna. The Keys are home to nearly sixty taxonomic families of bivalves such as clams and mussels--roughly half the world's bivalve family diversity. The first in a series of three volumes on the molluscan fauna of the Keys and adjacent regions,
Seashells of Southern Florida: Bivalves provides a comprehensive treatment of these bivalves, and also serves as a comparative anatomical guide to bivalve diversity worldwide.
Paula Mikkelsen and Rüdiger Bieler cover more than three hundred species of bivalves, including clams, scallops, oysters, mussels, shipworms, jewel boxes, tellins, and many lesser-known groups. For each family they select an exemplar species and illustrate its shell and anatomical features in detail. They describe habitat and other relevant information, and accompany each species account with high-resolution shell photographs of other family members. Text and images combine to present species--to family-level characteristics in a complete way never before seen. The book includes fifteen hundred mostly color photographs and images of shells, underwater habitats, bivalves in situ, original anatomical and hinge drawings, scanning electron micrographs, and unique transparent--shell illustrations with major organ systems color-coded and clearly shown. Seashells of Southern Florida: Bivalves is the most complete guide to subtropical bivalves available. It is an essential tool for students and teachers of molluscan diversity and systematics, and an indispensable identification guide for collectors, scuba divers, naturalists, environmental consultants, and natural-resource managers.
Synopsis
"A tremendous resource for zoologists, ecologists, and any researchers in tropical marine systems. This book describes and illustrates in great detail the incredibly diverse bivalve mollusk fauna of the Florida Keys. The lushness of the color illustrations and photographs will encourage even reticent readers to delve deeper into the text. This work is significant and important."
--Paul Valentich-Scott, coauthor of Bivalve Seashells of Western North America"This book provides the most thorough treatment of living mollusks in this region ever written. It provides anatomical details of many species for which the anatomy had not been described previously. In addition to serving as an identification guide, it focuses on mollusks as living organisms, providing more biological information than previous faunal guides for western Atlantic marine mollusks."--Gary Rosenberg, Academy of Natural Sciences
Synopsis
"A tremendous resource for zoologists, ecologists, and any researchers in tropical marine systems. This book describes and illustrates in great detail the incredibly diverse bivalve mollusk fauna of the Florida Keys. The lushness of the color illustrations and photographs will encourage even reticent readers to delve deeper into the text. This work is significant and important."--Paul Valentich-Scott, coauthor of Bivalve Seashells of Western North America
"This book provides the most thorough treatment of living mollusks in this region ever written. It provides anatomical details of many species for which the anatomy had not been described previously. In addition to serving as an identification guide, it focuses on mollusks as living organisms, providing more biological information than previous faunal guides for western Atlantic marine mollusks."--Gary Rosenberg, Academy of Natural Sciences
Synopsis
Located where the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean Sea converge, the Florida Keys are distinctive for their rich and varied marine fauna. The Keys are home to nearly sixty taxonomic families of bivalves such as clams and mussels--roughly half the world's bivalve family diversity. The first in a series of three volumes on the molluscan fauna of the Keys and adjacent regions,
Seashells of Southern Florida: Bivalves provides a comprehensive treatment of these bivalves, and also serves as a comparative anatomical guide to bivalve diversity worldwide.
Paula Mikkelsen and Rüdiger Bieler cover more than three hundred species of bivalves, including clams, scallops, oysters, mussels, shipworms, jewel boxes, tellins, and many lesser-known groups. For each family they select an exemplar species and illustrate its shell and anatomical features in detail. They describe habitat and other relevant information, and accompany each species account with high-resolution shell photographs of other family members. Text and images combine to present species--to family-level characteristics in a complete way never before seen. The book includes fifteen hundred mostly color photographs and images of shells, underwater habitats, bivalves in situ, original anatomical and hinge drawings, scanning electron micrographs, and unique transparent--shell illustrations with major organ systems color-coded and clearly shown. Seashells of Southern Florida: Bivalves is the most complete guide to subtropical bivalves available. It is an essential tool for students and teachers of molluscan diversity and systematics, and an indispensable identification guide for collectors, scuba divers, naturalists, environmental consultants, and natural-resource managers.
Synopsis
"A tremendous resource for zoologists, ecologists, and any researchers in tropical marine systems. This book describes and illustrates in great detail the incredibly diverse bivalve mollusk fauna of the Florida Keys. The lushness of the color illustrations and photographs will encourage even reticent readers to delve deeper into the text. This work is significant and important."--Paul Valentich-Scott, coauthor of
Bivalve Seashells of Western North America"This book provides the most thorough treatment of living mollusks in this region ever written. It provides anatomical details of many species for which the anatomy had not been described previously. In addition to serving as an identification guide, it focuses on mollusks as living organisms, providing more biological information than previous faunal guides for western Atlantic marine mollusks."--Gary Rosenberg, Academy of Natural Sciences
About the Author
Paula M. Mikkelsen is a marine biologist and director of publications at the Paleontological Research Institution in Ithaca, New York. Rudiger Bieler is an evolutionary biologist and curator of invertebrates at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. They are the coauthors of "Pearls: A Natural History".
Table of Contents
Preface
Introduction 1
Florida Keys 1
Natural History 1
Need for Protection 2
Florida Keys Bivalves 3
Habitats 3
History of Exploration and the Florida Keys Molluscan Diversity Project 5
Using This Book 6
Bivalve Morphology 11
Recent Bivalve Families of the World 18
The Florida Keys Bivalves 24
Nuculidae 24
Solemyidae 30
Manzanellidae 35
Nuculanidae 38
Yoldiidae 44
Arcidae 48
Noetiidae 58
Glycymerididae 62
Limopsidae 68
Philobryidae 74
Mytilidae 78
Pteriidae 92
Isognomonidae 98
Malleidae 104
Ostreidae 108
Gryphaeidae 114
Pinnidae 120
Limidae 126
Pectinidae 134
Propeamussiidae 148
Spondylidae 154
Plicatulidae 158
Anomiidae 162
Crassatellidae 166
Astartidae 172
Carditidae 176
Condylocardiidae 182
Pandoridae 186
Lyonsiidae 192
Periplomatidae 196
Spheniopsidae 200
Thraciidae 204
Verticordiidae 208
Poromyidae 214
Cuspidariidae 220
Lucinidae 228
Ungulinidae 240
Thyasiridae 246
Chamidae 250
Lasaeidae 258
Hiatellidae 264
Gastrochaenidae 268
Trapezidae 274
Sportellidae 279
Corbiculidae 284
Cardiidae 288
Veneridae 300
Tellinidae 322
Donacidae 340
Psammobiidae 344
Semelidae 350
Solecurtidae 358
Pharidae 364
Mactridae 368
Dreissenidae 374
Myidae 378
Corbulidae 382
Pholadidae 388
Teredinidae 396
Acknowledgments 409
A Note About Shell Collecting 411
A Note on Species Names Introduced by d'Orbigny 413
Illustrated Glossary of Bivalve Terms 415
General Literature Cited and Suggested Reading 449
Image Data and Credits 455
Index 481