Common Elephant Tusk vs Large-Neck Clam

Antalis entalis compared with Mya arenaria

Key Differences

• Common Elephant Tusk is Least Concern while Large-Neck Clam is Vulnerable.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Common Elephant Tusk	Large-Neck Clam
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Mollusca (Mollusks)	Mollusca (Mollusks)
Class	Scaphopoda (Scaphopoda)	Bivalvia (Bivalvia)
Order	Dentaliida (Dentaliida)	Myida (Myida)
Family	Dentaliidae	Myidae
Genus	Antalis	Mya
Species	Antalis entalis	Mya arenaria

Evolutionary Relationship

Common Elephant Tusk and Large-Neck Clam share a common ancestor at the Phylum level: Mollusca. (Mollusks)

Conservation Status

Common Elephant Tusk

LC — Least Concern

Large-Neck Clam

VU — Vulnerable

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Common Elephant Tusk	Large-Neck Clam
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Common Elephant Tusk

Habitat

Native to Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Distributed across Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.

Large-Neck Clam

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including temperate broadleaf and mixed forests, temperate coniferous forests, and temperate grasslands and steppes, among 5 distinct biome types within the Palearctic biogeographic realm. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Georgia, Turkey), Europe (22 countries), and North America (Canada, United States). Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Common Elephant Tusk

<em>Antalis entalis</em>, the common elephant tusk, is a marine mollusc in the class Scaphopoda, family Dentaliidae, classified as Least Concern by the IUCN Red List. The species is native to European waters and has been documented in Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, inhabiting subtidal and deep benthic zones of the northeastern Atlantic Ocean and North Sea. As a scaphopod, <em>Antalis entalis</em> is characterized by its distinctive curved, tusk-shaped shell that is open at both ends, allowing the animal to partially burrow vertically into sandy or muddy substrates with only the narrow posterior end projecting into the water column. The species feeds on foraminifera and other microscopic organisms in the sediment, capturing prey with specialized tentacle-like structures called captacula that extend through the broader anterior opening of the shell. Scaphopods have limited locomotion and typically remain partially buried throughout their lives. <em>Antalis entalis</em> plays a role in benthic communities as both a consumer of meiofauna and a prey item for predatory fish and invertebrates. Historically, elephant tusk shells of related species were used as currency and ornament by Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest coast. Biological traits of this species remain poorly documented in the scientific literature.

Large-Neck Clam

Large-Neck Clam (Mya arenaria) is classified as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List. Facing a high risk of endangerment in the wild, with declining populations and increasing habitat pressure.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 3 countries:

🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden