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) x 1.0 cm (0.4 inches).

Wounded Venus Clam Shell, Transennella vulnerata. Shell collected off the beach of Punta Chivato, Baja California Sur, December 2023.  Size: 4.3 cm (1.7 inches) x 4.3 cm (1.7 inches) x 1.4 cm (0.6 inches). Photograph and Identification courtesy of Colin Campbell, DVM, Punta Chivato, Baja California Sur.

Wounded Venus Clam Shell, Transennella vulnerata. Shell collected off the beach of Punta Chivato, Baja California Sur, December 2024.  Size: 4.8 cm (1.9 inches) x 4.4 cm (1.7 inches) x 1.6 cm (0.6 inches). Photograph and Identification courtesy of Colin Campbell, DVM, Punta Chivato, Baja California Sur.

Phylogeny: The Wounded Venus Clam Shell, Transennella vulnerata (Broderip, 1835), is a bivalve mollusk that is a member of the Veneridae Family of Venus Clam Shells. The genus Transennella is one of one hundred and seven genera in this family, and there are twelve species in this genus.

Description: The Wounded Venus Clam Shell has a circular to oval profile and a moderately thin structure. They are moderately inflated. The outside is sculpted with broad, concentric ridges. The exterior of the shell is cream to tan in color, often with irregular purplish commarginal bands. They may also be marked with brown radiating bands, maculations or chevrons. The interior is smooth and white in color with purple or pink tinges. They have a thin, shiny, translucent periostracum. Wounded Venus Clam Shells reach a maximum of 4.8 cm (1.9 inches) in length and 4.1 cm (1.6 inches) in height.

Habitat and Distribution: Wounded Venus Clams are found in sand and mud substrates, intertidally, and at depths to 35 m (115 feet). They are seldom found alive, and are usually found washed up on beaches. They are a subtropical to tropical Eastern Pacific species that are found in all Mexican waters of the Pacific Ocean with the exception that they are absent from the west coast of the Baja Peninsula and from north of Bahía San Nicolas, Baja California Sur, in the Sea of Cortez.

Ecology and Behavior: Wounded Venus Clams are suspension feeders, which feed on plankton and suspended organic matter. They are gonochoric and reproduce sexually, through broadcast spawning. Their engagement in any type of commensal, parasitic, or symbiotic relationship has not been formally documented. From a conservation perspective the Wounded Venus Clam has not been formally evaluated. However, they are fairly common with a relatively wide distribution and should be consider to be of Least Concern.

Synonyms: Cytheria vulnerata and Tinctora vulnerata.