Black-lip pearl oyster
Pinctada margaritifera
- Usual depth4–16 m
- Water temperature15–30 °C
- Best monthsJuly, September, and October
- How commonOccasional
About this species
Pinctada margaritifera, commonly known as the black-lip pearl oyster, is a species of pearl oyster, a saltwater mollusk, a marine bivalve mollusk in the family Pteriidae. This species is common in the Indo-Pacific within tropical coral reefs.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Pinctada margaritifera”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article
Where and when
Where it has been recorded
Worldwide
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Best months
Worldwide (open data)
- January: 18 records
- February: 16 records
- March: 10 records
- April: 6 records
- May: 30 records
- June: 17 records
- July: 46 records
- August: 24 records
- September: 60 records
- October: 49 records
- November: 15 records
- December: 14 records
Depth and water temperature
Depth
Mostly recorded at 4–16 m · Deepest record: 55 m
Water temperature
Recorded in surface water of 15–30 °C
Names and classification
- English
- Black-lip pearl oyster, Black-lip pearl shell, Black-lipped pearl oyster, Pacific pearl-oyster, black-lip pearl oyster, black-lip pearl shell, black-lipped pearl oyster
Names in 5 more languages
- German
- Gemeine Perlmuschel, Große Seeperlmuschel, Schwarzlippige Perlmuschel
- Spanish
- Madre perla labiada
- French
- Huître perlière
- Japanese
- クロチョウガイ
- Simplified Chinese
- 黑蝶珍珠蛤, 黑蝶真珠蛤
Other scientific names: Avicula chamoides, Avicula cumingii, Avicula hystrix, Margarita sinensis, Margaritifera fimbriata, Margaritifera margaritifera, Margaritiphora communis, Meleagrina margaritifera, Meleagrina nigromarginata, Mytilus margaritiferus, Pinctada foliacea, Pteria (Margaritifera) margaritifera, Pteria margaritifera
Similar species
- Pale Pearl Oyster
Pinctada albina
- Spotted Pearl Oyster
Pinctada maculata
Sources and credits
Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).
- Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
- Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
- Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
- 755 open-data records from 1758 to 2023.
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