A new record of the freshwater bivalve Pisidium amnicum (Family: Sphaeriidae) from Qena Governorate, Upper Egypt

S. Moustafa, Ahmed; H. M. Hussien, Elamier

doi:10.21608/ejabf.2021.207404

A new record of the freshwater bivalve Pisidium amnicum (Family: Sphaeriidae) from Qena Governorate, Upper Egypt

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

10.21608/ejabf.2021.207404

Abstract

Family Sphaeriidae was neglected in North Africa and studies on this group of benthic organisms are very limited compared to other taxa. The originality of this work is drawn from the fact that this was the first time to record a member of the Family Sphaeriidae in Egypt. In addition, to our knowledge, this is the first record of Pisidium amnicum in Egypt. The current work was conducted to enhance the faunal knowledge and determine the actual conservation status of Genus Pisidium (Pfeiffer, 1821), Pisidium amnicum (Müller, 1774), which was collected from the River Nile in Qena Governorate. The shell of these individuals is up to 11 mm I length; it inhabits slow-flowing rivers; has a subtriangular shape in the adult; ornamented with very fine striations, giving it a shiny aspect. It has a thick appendicular at the top of each valve and numerous pores covering the internal surface. The hinge plate is arched but hardly or not at all thickened. These bivalves also have a relatively small outer demibranch. Although externally, all the age classes resemble each other, the shape of their ligament-pit is different; it is either long or narrow. Data in this context is highly required to address the impact of the human increasing pressure on habitat loss and anthropogenic transformation of habitats of Pisidium amnicum in the Mediterranean biodiversity.

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