Southwest Florida Shells

by José H. Leal

Family Carditidae

Cardites floridanus

(Conrad, 1838)

Broad-ribbed Carditid

Shell size to 40 mm; shell thick, solid, heavy, ovate. Sculpture of about 15-20 thick radial ribs crossed by concentric lines, which gives scaly appearance to ribs. Umbos close together. Lunule small. Color yellowish-white with blotches of reddish purple to brown. Interior white. Attaches by byssus to hard substrates. Common on mud flats. The yellow-tinged white-shelled color variant shown in image 2 is infrequently found on the barrier islands of Collier County. This shell was collected by Amy Tripp on Kice Island. The composite image to the right shows a juvenile specimen measuring about 9