Description: A small, broadly oval, tumid bivalve coloured yellowish, grey or shades of brown. Umbos rounded, more or less central. Shell pores are few and irregularly dispersed. Widespread and often abundant. 9-11 mm.

World Distribution: Very widespread in Europe and across Asia to North America. Distribution type: Circumpolar Wide-temperate (66).

Irish Distribution: Widespread and usually abundant throughout but more thinly distributed to the west and north.

Ecology:

• Abundant in a variety of freshwaters but especially lakes and rivers of moderate hardness
• Commonest in bottom sediments but it will readily climb macrophytes
• Rarely found in swiftly flowing water although abundant in hill streams in one or two of the Antrim Glens

Key Identification Features:

• A small, broadly oval, tumid bivalve
• Surface silky with very fine, irregular concentric growth ridges
• Coloured yellowish, grey or shades of brown
• Umbos rounded, more or less central
• Pores present on the shell but these are few in number and irregularly dispersed

Red list status:

• Least concern (lc).

Distribution Map from NBN: Sphaerium corneum at National Biodiversity Network mapping facility, data for UK.

iNaturalist: Sphaerium corneum at iNaturalist World Species Observations database.

GBIF data for Sphaerium corneum | Classification: Bivalvia, Sphaeriida, Sphaeriidae, Sphaerium

Thumbnails for genus Sphaerium