#4720 · 🐌 snails, slugs & other molluscs
White Furrow-shell
🇳🇱 Witte dunschaal ·Abra alba
🐌 Snails, slugs & other molluscs 📍 in the Netherlands
📍 Wittmund, Niedersächsisches Wattenmeer, DE-NI, DE
📍 Heist, Knokke-Heist, België
📍 Cavo Kastri Residence Complex, Σιθωνία 630 88, Ελλάδα
📍 Vilanova i la Geltrú, Barcelona, Spain 
📍 Archirondel
📍 Heist, Knokke-Heist, België
📍 Alpes-Maritimes, Frankrijk
10 photos from iNaturalist (Creative Commons) · credits & licences
- 1. © George Manavopoulos · CC BY-NC 4.0
- 2. © George Manavopoulos · CC BY-NC 4.0
- 3. © Andreas Bennetsen Boe · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
- 4. Wittmund, Niedersächsisches Wattenmeer, DE-NI, DE:© Roland Gromes · CC BY 4.0
- 5. Heist, Knokke-Heist, België:© Johan Devos · CC BY-NC 4.0
- 6. Cavo Kastri Residence Complex, Σιθωνία 630 88, Ελλάδα:© George Manavopoulos · CC BY-NC 4.0
- 7. Vilanova i la Geltrú, Barcelona, Spain :© Tim Johnson · CC BY 4.0
- 8. Archirondel:© Chris Isaacs · CC BY-NC 4.0
- 9. Heist, Knokke-Heist, België:© Johan Devos · CC BY-NC 4.0
- 10. Alpes-Maritimes, Frankrijk:© Mathijs Zonneveld · CC BY 4.0
what is it?
Abra alba or the white furrow shell is a species of bivalve mollusc in the family Semelidae. It occurs in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, where it lives on the floor in shallow areas buried in soft sediments.
base stats
Bars compare against all animals on log scales: up to 300,000 Dutch and 600,000 worldwide sightings (the most-seen species), 150 t (blue whale), 30 m and 400 years (Greenland shark).
fun facts
- Spotted 9 times in the Netherlands on iNaturalist.
- 79 observations worldwide on iNaturalist.
- Scientifically named by William Wood in 1802 (224 years ago).
fact sheet
- English
- White Furrow-shell
- Nederlands
- Witte dunschaal
- scientific name
- Abra alba
- class
- Bivalvia
- order
- Cardiida
- family
- Semelidae
- sightings in NL
- 9
- sightings in Europe
- 46
- sightings worldwide
- 79
- GBIF records in NL
- 30,293
- weight
- —
- length
- —
- lifespan
- —
- named
- 1802 by William Wood
relatives· Semelidae
Sources: iNaturalist taxon 483093, Wikidata Q2568492, GBIF 5189061, Wikipedia (EN), Wikipedia (NL). Intro text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.