Round Hickorynut - Obovaria subrotunda
Federal Status: Not listed (Watters
1995)
Ohio Status: Not listed (Watters 1995)
Key charactersistics: Almost perfectly round, relatively small shell, with a smooth, brown, rayless periostracum (Cummings, Mayer 1992).
Similar species: Hickorynut, round pigtoe, ebonyshell (Cummings, Mayer 1992).
Description: Shell round or circular, moderately thick, and inflated. Anterior and posterior ends rounded in males, somewhat truncated in females. Umbos low and centrally placed, slightly elevated above the hinge line. Beak sculpture of a few indistinct, concentric ridges, usually evident only on very young shells. Shell smooth, growth lines dark but often indistinct. Periostracum yellowish brown to dark chestnut brown or blackish, and rayless. Length to 3 inches (7.6 cm) (Cummings, Mayer 1992).
Pseudocardinal teeth moderately small, serrated, and divergent. Lateral teeth slightly curved, fairly short, and moderately thin. Interdentum narrow or absent. Beak cavity fairly deep. Nacre white, iridescent posteriorly (Cummings, Mayer 1992).
Hosts: None reported (Watters 1995).
Habitat: Medium-sized streams in sand and gravel in areas with moderate flow (Cummings, Mayer 1992).
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