Lima lima

Lima lima, or the spiny fileclam,^[2] is a species of bivalve mollusc in the family Limidae.^[3]

Lima lima
Lama lima from Sicily on display at the Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Milano
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Bivalvia
Order:	Limida
Family:	Limidae
Genus:	Lima
Species:	L. lima
Binomial name
Lima lima (Linnaeus, 1758)
Synonyms
Lima alba Cuvier, 1797 Lima squamosa Lamarck, 1801 Lima vulgaris Scacchi, 1836 Ostrea lima Linnaeus, 1758 [1]

Description

The shell of an adult Lima lima can be as long as 30–79 millimetres (1.2–3.1 in). The surface of the valves show 18–24 strong ribs^[4] covered with small scales. These clams are filter feeders.

Distribution and habitat

This species can be found in the Mediterranean Sea, in the Eastern Atlantic and in Caribbean waters, ranging from southern Florida to the West Indies and Bermuda. It lives on rocky bottoms and coral, usually in the seagrass prairies of Posidonia oceanica, at depths of 0 to 50-metre (160 ft).