Aperture - opening of shell through which the animal can protrude Apex - the pointed tip of a gastropods shell where growth begins Axial - situated around or along an axis or a central line Beak - the point of the shells where they meet at the hinge; also called umbo Bivalve - also called Pelecypoda; mollusk with a two-part shell including clams, oysters, mussels, and scallops; shells attached by hinge; no head or radula Body whorl - largest coil containing body Brackish - somewhat salty Byssus - byssal threads; thin fibers produced by the byssal gland in the foot of some bivalves, which attach the animal to a stationary object Camouflage - to disguise and match with surroundings Cannibalistic - the act of eating the same species Carnivores - meat-eaters; animals that feed on other animals Carrion - dead and decaying flesh Chemoreceptor - a sense organ that receives chemical signals from surroundings Colonize - to establish or settle in a colony or group Commensal - friendly; no harm to either individual Concentric - having a common center; going to the same place; circling Deposit feeders - animals that feed on organic matter in the sediment Detritivores - detritus (broken down plant and animal material) eaters Detritus - tiny pieces of broken down animal and plant material suspended in water Echinoderm - group of marine animals with stiff spiny body walls (sea urchins, sand dollars, and sea stars) Environments - all factors (physical, chemical, and biological) affecting the life of an organism or community Equivalve - having equal halves Foot - the fleshy part of a mollusk that aids in movement Herbivores - plant-eaters Hermaphrodites - either a change of sex or sexual flexibility; can be both male and female at the same time Hinge - where the shell halves connect; attached by a ligament Intertidal - being exposed at low tide and covered at high tide Larvae - single larva; immature form of an animal that changes shape before becoming an adult Ligament - the connective tissue between the two halves of the shell that allows for opening Linear - consisting of a straight line Lip - the edge of the shell bordering the aperture Mantle - the membrane in a mollusk that surrounds the soft body parts; secretes calcareous shell Mantle Cavity - the open space surrounding mantle Periphery - the border of a rounded object Predate - the act of killing and consuming animals Predator - one that kills and consumes animals Radial - coming from a common center; arranged like spokes Radula - a ribbonlike toothed appendage used to bore, saw, tear, or scrape depending on the feeding habits of that particular species Scavenge - the act of collecting and eating dead
plants and animals Sedentary - characterized by or requiring much sitting; still Sessile - permanently attached; immobile Spat - the young of a bivalve mollusk Spawning - to produce eggs or offspring in large
numbers Sutures - a seam or line along which two things or parts are joined Tactile - sense of touch Tentacle - a long flexible projection near or on head Tests - hard shell-like covering of some echinoderms Umbo - the hinged end; also called beak Valve - another name for shell Zooplankton - animal plankton |