Mercenaria
| Mercenaria Temporal range: Upper Oligocene–present, | |
|---|---|
| Hard clams Mercenaria mercenaria | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Bivalvia |
| Order: | Venerida |
| Superfamily: | Veneroidea |
| Family: | Veneridae |
| Genus: | Mercenaria Schumacher, 1817 |
| Species | |
Mercenaria is a genus of edible marine bivalves in the family Veneridae, the Venus clams. The genus includes the quahogs, consisting of Mercenaria mercenaria, the northern quahog or hard clam, and M. campechiensis, the southern quahog, both important species for human consumption.