Mirror shell (Phacosoma japonicum)

Japanese: カガミガイ(鏡貝) - カガミガイ（英語表記）Phacosoma japonicum

A bivalve mollusk of the Veneridae family (illustration). It is so named because it is white and disc-shaped, and for the same reason is also called mochigai (rice cake shell) or shirogai (white shell). The shell is 6.5 cm long, 6 cm high, and only slightly bulges at 2.8 cm. Growth veins are evident on the shell surface, and it grows somewhat plate-like at the rear. It inhabits the sandy bottoms of shallow seas from southern Hokkaido to Kyushu. It is common in large inner bays, and is found in the sand by searching for it with the fingertips. The meat is edible, but tough. A similar species, P. troscheli , has light brown radial bands on the shell surface and is found from the Boso Peninsula to Kyushu.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

マルスダレガイ科の二枚貝（イラスト）。円盤状で白いのでこの名があり，同じ理由からモチガイ(餅貝)，シロガイ(白貝)ともいう。殻の長さ6.5cm，高さ6cm，膨らみは弱く2.8cm。殻表の成長脈は明らかで，後方では多少板状に成長する。北海道南部から九州までの浅海の砂底にすむ。大きい内湾に多く，砂中にいるのを指先でさがしてとり，肉を食べるが硬い。この種に似て殻表に淡褐色の放射帯のあるのはマルヒナガイP.troscheliで，房総半島から九州に分布する。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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