Mussel Identification

[Spongiform]

Can anyone ID this fella?

He was found in the Tennessee River a few miles above the Chickamauga Dam along a rocky cove.

The shell was approximately 6.5 inches long - dark and covered in algae and some short seaweed. The inside shell was a purple/pink/violet iridescent color.

According to the homeless fella that ate him (I got the shell from him afterwards) it tasted much like any other clam - just bigger.

(click to enlarge)


Thanks in advance!

 

[jshepherd]

It looks like a Black Sandshell, Ligumia recta.

http://www.marietta.edu/~biol/mussels/blaksand.html

 

[Pearl Dreams]

Look at that rosy colored nacre! I wonder if any pearls have ever been found in this species of shell?

 

[Mikeyy]

Look at that rosy colored nacre! I wonder if any pearls have ever been found in this species of shell?

Yes they have