(Linné, 1758)
Description (shell):
Shell approximately circular, inequilateral, umbones just anterior to midline, small but prominent. Anterior hinge line shallowly concave below lunule; boundary with anterior margin distinct, but margin not highly arched beyond it. Sculpture of numerous fine concentric ridges, shell surface smooth to touch. Lunule deeply impressed, finely striated, heart-shaped, longer than wide. Escutcheon poorly defined. Growth stages clear. Each valve with three cardinal teeth; left valve with a single anterior lateral, right valve with a corresponding pit. Adductor scars and pallial line distinct, pallial sinus deep, narrow, and U-shaped, extending anterio-dorsally into the anterior half of the shelf.
Size:
Up to 40 mm long.
Colour:
Off-white, fawn, or light brown, umbones often tinted yellow or pink. Periostracum thin. Inner surfaces white (D. lupina).
Animal:
Greyish white, the mantle-margins fringed with short tentacles. The short siphons are united except at the mouths, and are capable of extension to three times the length of the shell, showing that this species is in the habit of burrowing more deeply than Dosina exoleta (D. lupina-animal).
Habitat:
In sandy mud, sand, and shell-gravel, from the lower shore to at least 120 m.
Distribution:
Distributed from Iceland to the Mediterranean and West Africa (Distr. D. lupina).