Week 8: Sardine (Sardina pilchardus)

The sardine was @SpeciesofUK from 20th to 26th January, 2013.

Sardines are named after the island of Sardinia in the Mediterranean, where they traditionally occurred in large numbers.

The sardine species Sardina pilchardus, which is found around the UK, is distributed across the NE Atlantic, from Iceland in the NW to the northern coast of Africa and as far south as Senegal.¹ This species has a particular concentration around the British Isles and the North Sea, making it a true UK species.²

Sardines
[Source: Etrusko25]

Week 5: Native Oyster (Ostrea edulis)

The Native Oyster was @SpeciesofUK from 30th December 2012 to 5th January 2013.

There are hundreds of species of oyster in the world. They are split into two main families – true oysters (which include edible oysters) and pearl oysters. There are also a few other smaller families.

The Native oyster is a species of true oyster.

Oysters are a type of bivalve mollusc. They're a mollusc because they have a mantle (or shell), and they are bivalve because the shell comes in two halves or 'valves.'