Macoma nasuta

The Bent-nosed Macoma

Phylum Mollusca
Class Bivalvia
Subclass Lamellibranchia
Order Veneroida
Family Tellidae
Genus Macoma
Species nasuta

Description 5 cm long; shell white with gray and brown, often quite eroded; oval, flattened; shell bent sharply toward the right near the posterior end; siphons are separated, and change colors.; they are white when extended and bright orange when contracted.

Habitat: Found buried 10 to 20 cm deep, near lower-tide lines, in areas where the substrate is a mixture of mud and sand, gravel, and clay.

Natural History: It lies bent side up with the incurrent siphon protruding to the surface where it bends down and sucks up fine organic particles from the bottom. The excurrent siphon extends to below the surface where it discharges the filtered water.