Handbook of Paleontology 157 



Long Island it has been reported as occurring in soft 

 ground even above low-tide mark near the mouths of 

 creeks. The largest of these cockles has a height and 

 length of one inch. There is a smaller species with 26 

 slightly rounded ribs and less than one-half inch in its 

 largest diameter. This is a cold-water species and is very 

 abundant, scattered everywhere along the coast from 

 New York northward. It is known as "small fry" among 

 the cockles and serves as food for fishes. The Ark 

 Shells {Area) are another type of shell that are cast up 

 on beaches in numbers to attract attention. They are 

 solid trapezoidal or rounded shells with a tendency to 

 have strong, radiating ribs. The Ponderous Ark {Area 

 ponderosa) is the most prominent Area upon our Atlantic 

 coast, especially south of Virginia. South of Cape Hat- 

 teras it is cast up on beaches in numbers beyond compu- 

 tation. The shell is two and one-half inches long and two 

 inches high, very heavy and solid, with 25 to 28 ribs. In 

 life the shell is covered with a heavy, coarse, velvety 

 epidermis, almost jet-black in color. The Bloody Clam 

 {Area pexata) is an exceedingly common species found 

 on the beaches of Long Island sound and along the coast 

 of New Jersey. It is common under stones or on grav- 

 elly beaches. The shell is one and a quarter inches wide, 

 with 32 ridges radiating from the beak and there is a 

 rough, brown skin. This clam has red blood, hence the 

 name. A small form, the Little Macoma (Macoma bal- 

 thiea), is of interest because of its wide range along our 

 shore and in the waters of northern Europe. It is 

 exceedingly common along our coast from Maine to 

 Georgia. The Little Macoma is plentiful in all sandy 

 and muddy bays and in the Hudson river above New 

 York. It is dingy in color, covered with a dirty looking, 



