The purple bankclimber (Elliptoideus sloatianus) is a rare and endangered species of freshwater mussel, an aquatic bivalve mollusk in the family Unionidae, the river mussels.

Purple bankclimber
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Bivalvia
Order: Unionida
Family: Unionidae
Tribe: Pleurobemini
Genus: Elliptoideus
Frierson, 1927
Species:
E. sloatianus
Binomial name
Elliptoideus sloatianus
(I. Lea, 1840)
Synonyms

Nephronaias sloatianus I. Lea, 1840

This species is endemic to the United States. It can be found in the Chattahoochee, Flint, and Ochlockonee rivers. Its habitats are rivers and streams. It is normally found in medium currents over sand, sand mixed with mud, or gravel substrates, swept free of silt by the current.

The threats to this mussel are habitat change, sedimentation, and water quality degradation.

References

edit
  1. ^ Cummings, K.; Cordeiro, J. (2012). "Elliptoideus sloatianus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2012: e.T7652A3140353. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2012-1.RLTS.T7652A3140353.en. Retrieved 17 November 2021.