Strawberry Cockle
Fragum unedo
The Strawberry Cockle belongs to a group of molluscs known as bivalves (two shells). It is creamy white with strawberry-red scales and has a solid, strongly ribbed shell with a marked ridge along one side. Like many other bivalves such as clams, it feeds by using a siphon to draw in water and pass it to the gills. The gills extract oxygen from the water and also use cilia (rapidly moving, small hair-like structures) to direct food particles towards the mouth. Two flap-like extensions of the lips continue the transport of food into the mouth. Another siphon returns the filtered water to the sea. Strawberry Cockles are common on sandy flats in the intertidal and shallow subtidal zones.
Distributed throughout the Indo-West Pacific.
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