Pecten Temporal range: Cretaceous - Recent |
|
---|---|
![]() |
|
Two beachworn upper valves of Pecten maximus from Wales | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Mollusca |
Class: | Bivalvia |
Subclass: | Pteriomorphia |
Order: | Pectinoida |
Superfamily: | Pectinoidea |
Family: | Pectinidae |
Subfamily: | Pectininae |
Tribe: | Pectinini |
Genus: |
Pecten O. F. Müller, 1776 |
Pecten is a genus of large scallops or saltwater clams, marine bivalve mollusks in the family Pectinidae, the scallops. This is the type genus of the family.
This genus is known in the fossil record from the Cretaceous period to the Quaternary period (age range: from 70.6 to 0.0 million years ago). Fossil shells within this genus have been found all over the world.
The name Pecten is from the Latin word for a comb or rake. Since 1904, a Pecten shell has been used as the basis of the logo of Shell petroleum company.
Species in the genus Pecten include: