Threehorn wartyback

Obliquaria reflexa Rafinesque, 1820

Threehorn wartyback.
Obliquaria reflexa, INHS 3052. Rock River, Rock Island County, Illinois. Length: 2.2 inches (5.6 cm).

Other common names: None

Key characters: Thick, kidney-shaped shell, heavy teeth, yellowish brown, with broken green rays

Similar species: Spike, mucketellipserainbow

Description: Shell solid, thick, elongate, compressed, and kidney-shaped. Anterior end rounded, posterior end bluntly pointed. Dorsal margin straight to slightly curved, ventral margin curved, straight, or arched. Umbos low, approximately even with the hinge line. Beak sculpture, if visible, of two or three indistinct ridges. Shell smooth. Periostracum yellowish brown to brown with broad green rays, usually interrupted or broken. Length to 6 inches (15.2 cm).

Threehorn wartyback distribution 1992

Pseudocardinal teeth thick and triangular; two in the left valve, one in the right, sometimes with a low, roughened tubercular tooth on either side. Lateral teeth short, nearly straight, heavy, and serrated. Beak cavity shallow or absent. Some females with a fold or groove on the inside. Nacre pearly white.

Habitat: Medium to large rivers in gravel

Status: Fairly widespread but only locally abundant. Disappearing from parts of its range. Endangered in Illinois.

INHS Mollusk Collection
1816 S. Oak Street
Champaign, IL 61820
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