butterfly shell


co•qui•na

(koʊˈki nə)

n., pl. -nas. 1. Also called butterfly shell. a small clam, Donax variabilis, having fanlike bands of various hues and common in intertidal zones of the E and S U.S. coasts: the paired empty shells often spread in a butterfly shape. 2. any similar clam. 3. a soft whitish rock made up of fragments of marine shells and coral, used as a building material. [1830–40, Amer.; < Sp: literally, shellfish = Old Spanish coc(a) shellfish (< Latin concha; see conch) + -ina -ine3]