Lithophaga

Lithophaga, the date mussels, are a genus of medium-sized marine bivalve molluscs in the family Mytilidae. Some of the earliest fossil Lithophaga shells have been found in Mesozoic rocks from the Alps and from Vancouver Island.^[2][3]

Lithophaga Temporal range: 225.0–0.0 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N Triassic to Recent
One valve of a shell of Lithophaga truncata
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Bivalvia
Order:	Mytilida
Family:	Mytilidae
Genus:	Lithophaga Röding, 1798
Species
See text
Synonyms[1]
Lithophagus Megerle von Mühlfeld, 1811 Lithodomus Cuvier, 1816

The shells of species in this genus are long and narrow with parallel sides. The animals bore into stone or coral rock with the help of pallial gland secretions,^[4] hence the systematic name Lithophaga, which means "stone-eater". Their club-shaped borings are given the trace fossil name Gastrochaenolites.^[3]

Species

Species within the genus Lithophaga include:

• Lithophaga antillarum (d'Orbigny, 1842) - giant date mussel
• Lithophaga aristata (Dillwyn, 1817) - scissor date mussel
• Lithophaga attenuata (Deshayes, 1836) - attenuated date mussel
• Lithophaga balanas Dall
• Lithophaga balanus Dall
• Lithophaga bisulcata (d'Orbigny, 1842) - mahogany date mussel
• Lithophaga cardigera
• Lithophaga cavernosa
• Lithophaga cinnamomeus
• Lithophaga dactylus
• Lithophaga fasciola Dall, Bartsch, & Rehder
• Lithophaga gracilis Philippi
• Lithophaga hawaia Dall, Bartsch, & Rehder
• Lithophaga ilabis (Deshayes)
• Lithophaga lithophaga (Linne)
• Lithophaga nigra (d'Orbigny, 1842) - black date mussel
• Lithophaga plumula (Hanley, 1844) - feather date mussel
• Lithophaga punctata (Kleemann & Hoeksema, 2002)
• Lithophaga rogersi S. S. Berry, 1957 - Roger's date mussel
• Lithophaga truncata (Gray, 1843)
• Lithophaga simplex