Turkey Wing

This species is found along the Atlantic coast of North America, ranging from North Carolina to the West Indies and Bermuda. It attaches itself to rocks or other hard substrates in shallow water with byssus threads.

Arca zebra is a filter feeder, taking in surrounding water and particulates through its reduced siphons and expelling water while consuming microscopic algae, diatoms, and phytoplankton.

Arca zebra is a protandric hermaphrodite, a type of sequential hermaphrodite with individuals starting out as males and developing female reproductive capacity later in the life cycle. Reproduction is dependent on food availability and seasonal changes. The gonad tissues of Arca zebra change in mass throughout the year. The percentage of somatic tissue mass composed of gonad tissue mass sees a large increase from roughly 4% to 40% from May through late September and a large decrease from roughly 40% to 3% from October through January. The percentage then increases slightly from about 3% to 12% in February before decreasing to around 4% between March and April. Highest reproductive activity occurs around July through late September, when the gonad mass is at its greatest.

Arca zebra are caught for human consumption and canning. As efficient filter feeders, they convert large amounts of planktonic mass into biomass usable by humans. A large bed spanning 70–80 km2 in the Cacopata region of the Araya Peninsula, Venezuela has been a site of fishing since 1940. The annual catch generally ranges from 15,792 to 33,986 tons per year but has reached 40,000 tons in the past. It is a significant income source for Venezuelan artisanal fisheries. These fisheries employ non-selective fishing methods, resulting in significant bycatch of other molluscs, including the endangered music volute. Bycatch also frequently includes the aforementioned Akoya pearl oyster, leafy jewel box clam, and apple murex as well as non-mollusc species.