Pink Heelsplitter - Potamilus alatus
Federal Status: Not listed (Watters 1995)
Ohio Status: Not listed (Watters 1995)
Key characteristics: An elongate and rectangular shell, well-developed posterior wing, dark green to dark brown,with a purple or pink nacre (Cummings, Mayer 1992).
Similar species: Bleufer, white heelsplitter, pink papershell (Cummings, Mayer 1992).
Description: Shell large, elongate, laterally compressed and somewhat rectangular, thin in young shells to moderately thick in older individuals. Anterior end rounded, posterior end bluntly squared or truncated. Umbos flattened and only slightly elevated above the hinge line. Beak sculpture of three or four concentric ridges, visible only in small shells. Large wing present posterior to the umbos. Shell smooth, dark green or brown, becoming black in old individuals. Young shells typically marked with dark green rays that become fainter withage. Length to 8 inches (20.3 cm) (Cummings, Mayer 1992).
Pseudocardinal teeth small, roughened, thin and divergent; two in the left valve, two in the right. Lateral teeth long, thin, and straight to slightly curved. Beak cavity shallow. Nacre usually purple or pinkish purple, rarely white; highly iridescent (Cummings, Mayer 1992).
Hosts: Freshwater drum (Watters 1995).
Habitat: Medium to large rivers in mud or mixed mud, sand, and gravel (Cummings, Mayer 1992).
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