---
title: "Eastern Elliptio"
description: "Elliptio complanata — Weitere Tiere. The eastern elliptio (Elliptio complanata) is a freshwater mussel in the Unionidae family, native to Canada and the United States."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/de/animal/eastern-elliptio
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Eastern Elliptio

> Elliptio complanata — Weitere Tiere. The eastern elliptio (Elliptio complanata)  is a freshwater mussel in the Unionidae family, native to Canada and the United States.

- Scientific name: *Elliptio complanata*
- Category: `other` (Weitere Tiere)
- Habitats: `freshwater` (See & Fluss)
- iNaturalist observations: 9287
- Wikidata: [Q3012534](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q3012534)
- iNaturalist taxon: [151576](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/151576)

## Names

- en: Eastern Elliptio
- fr: Elliptio de l'est

## Countries with the most observations

CA (4054), US (3799)

## Summary

The eastern elliptio (Elliptio complanata)  is a freshwater mussel in the Unionidae family, native to Canada and the United States. It is a bivalve member of the phylum Mollusca. Not only is it found in Canada and the United States, but it is frequently the most abundant species of mussel found in its home waterways. It is the most common mussel in the Delaware River  and the most common mussel found in the state of New Hampshire and Vermont. It can be found in the substrate at the bottom of lakes, ponds and rivers. Size is variable, but can reach up to 13 centimetres (5.1 in) in length.

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_elliptio

## Photo

![Eastern Elliptio](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/eastern-elliptio/medium.jpg)

Photo: Lynn Harper · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/54323051

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/eastern-elliptio?lang=de` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).