A genus of small marine bivalve mollusks (clams) distinguished by their heart-shaped shells.
From Latin cardita, diminutive of cardium, which comes from Greek kardia (heart). Named for the distinctive heart-like shape of the shell, used in malacology (study of mollusks).
Humans have been naming seashells by what they look like for thousands of years—cardita clams got their name because their shell really does look like a heart shape, just like nautilus shells resemble a coil.
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