Wounded Venus Clam Shell, Transennella vulnerata 

Wounded Venus Clam Shell, Transennella vulnerata. Shell collected from within the estuary of the Magdalena Bay complex, Baja California Sur, October 2018.  Size: 2.9 cm (1.1 inches) x 2.5 cm (1.0 inches).

The Wounded Venus Clam, Transennella vulnerata (Broderip, 1835), is a bivalve mollusk of the Veneridae Family of Venus Clams. The shell has a rounded to oval profile with a moderately thin structure that is only moderately inflated. The outside is sculpted with broad, concentric ridges. The exterior of the shell is cream to tan in color, often with a purplish commarginal band, and may also be marked with brown radiating bands, maculations or chevrons. The interior is white in color with purple or pink tinges and smooth in texture. They have a thin, shiny, translucent periostracum. The Wounded Venus Shells reach a maximum of 4.8 cm (1.9 inches) in length and 4.1 cm (1.6 inches) in height.

Wounded Venus Clams are found in sand or mud habitats, intertidally to depths of 35 m (115 feet). They are seldom found alive, and are usually found washed up on beaches. They range from Bahia San Nicolas, Baja California Sur within the Sea of Cortez to Panama.

Synonyms include Cytheria vulnerate, Pitar vulneratus, Tinctora vulnerata and Transennella vulneratus.