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Please
Note: Red text
is defined in the Glossary
Description
Isaac Lea described this species in 1838. The Tennessee heelsplitter
has a somewhat elongate and compressed shell.
The shell is thin but not fragile. The umbo
projects only slightly above the hinge line.
The posterior slope is rounded and
the ventral margin is straight. There
are two pseudocardinal teeth in the
left valve and one in the
right valve. The lateral teeth
are poorly defined and nearly vestigial.
The periostracum is yellow or golden
brown, darkening to brown or black with age. Young animals may have
green or brown rays. The nacre
is bluish-white, often with a salmon wash anteriorly and into the
beak cavity (Biggins 1990, Parmalee and Bogan 1998).
Distribution
(see map)
The Tennessee heelsplitter is widely distributed in small streams
throughout the Tennessee and Alabama River drainages in Alabama,
Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Virginia; however, it has
not been documented in North Carolina since before 1913.
Distribution by
County: No extant populations known.
Habitat Preferences
The Tennessee heelsplitter is found in small, headwater streams.
High densities are most often observed in sand/mud substrates.
Life History
Virtually nothing is known of the life history of this species.
It is believed to be bradytictic.
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