Unio cariei
Encyclopedia
Unio cariei was a species
of medium-sized freshwater mussel, an aquatic
bivalve mollusc in the family Unionidae
.
This species was endemic to the island of Réunion
in the Indian Ocean, but it is now extinct.
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of medium-sized freshwater mussel, an aquatic
Aquatic animal
An aquatic animal is an animal, either vertebrate or invertebrate, which lives in water for most or all of its life. It may breathe air or extract its oxygen from that dissolved in water through specialised organs called gills, or directly through its skin. Natural environments and the animals that...
bivalve mollusc in the family Unionidae
Unionidae
Unionidae is a family of freshwater mussels, the largest in the order Unionoida, the bivalve mollusks sometimes known as river mussels, naiads, or simply as unionids.The range of distribution for this family is world-wide...
.
This species was endemic to the island of Réunion
Réunion
Réunion is a French island with a population of about 800,000 located in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar, about south west of Mauritius, the nearest island.Administratively, Réunion is one of the overseas departments of France...
in the Indian Ocean, but it is now extinct.
Source
- Bouchet, P. & von Cosel, R. 1996. Unio cariei. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 7 August 2007.