Bob,

You've got a modern day brachiopod (usually thought of as a fossil).  There
were once thousands of species but today there are probably just a couple
hundred species.  They are not mollusks, the shell is not calcium and it
will dissolve in Clorox -- so watch out when you clean it.  The small
opening by the hinge area is the attachment point for a small stalk that was
attached to the substrate.  And last but not least, the animal is oriented
like a cartoon clam.  If the shell is on laid on its side, it is actually
either the bottom or the top.  One valve is the top and the other the
bottom -- unlike bivalve mollusks which have the two valves on each side of
the animal.

Tom Eichhorst in New Mexico -- lots of fossil brachs here.


> Just finished entering our bivalve collection into our computer. Have a
shell
> that was obtained as Terebratalia transversa (Sowerby, 1846) from off La
> Jolla, California attached to rocks in 120 ft. of water. Color is orange.
> Can't find anything about this genus or species. The genus was not in A
> Classification Of The Living Mollusca, so assume it is bogus. Anyone have
a
> wild idea what it might be. Thanking all in advance.
> Bob
> Panama City, Florida
>