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A live cowry Cypraea chinensis

The Mollusca, common name molluscs or mollusks, is a large phylum of invertebrate animals. There are at least 85,000 recognized extant species of molluscs. This is the largest marine phylum, comprising about 23% of all the named marine organisms. Numerous molluscs also live in freshwater and terrestrial habitats. Molluscs are highly diverse, not only in size and in anatomical structure, but also in behaviour and in habitat.

The phylum Mollusca is typically divided into nine or ten taxonomic classes, of which two are extinct. The gastropods (snails and slugs) include by far the most classified species, accounting for 80% of the total. Molluscs have for many centuries been the source of important luxury goods, notably pearls, mother of pearl, Tyrian purple dye, and sea silk. Their shells have also been used as money in some pre-industrial societies. (Read more...)