Behavior
and reproduction
The habitat
of the pen shell is the coastal region. It lives half buried
in the sediment, where it finds food and shelter and it
remains anchored to the same place to the end of its life.
The pen shell live at different depths depending on age, the young
individuals living near the surface and the older individuals
at a depth of approximately 40 metres.
The eggs mature and the larvas develop in the open seas. When the shell grows,
the larva become heavy and falls to the bottom where it attachs itself.
Influence
of man
Ancient artisans used the fine strong byssus threads of the pen shell to
manufacture the so-called sea silk.
The decline in populations is partly due to the decline in the poseidonia oceanica
seagrass meadows. Also tourism, various pollutants and unauthorized fishing
have
contributed
to accelerating the decline of this species.
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