Radula

A ribbon-like feeding organ bearing rows of tiny teeth, found in most mollusks but absent from bivalves. It scrapes, pierces, or cuts food.

Odontophore: A muscular support beneath the radula that moves and guides it during feeding. This structure carries and controls the radula as it extends and retracts.
Grazing: Feeding by scraping or cropping food from a surface. Many herbivorous mollusks use the radula to scrape algae from rocks.
Chiton radula: A radula whose tooth tips are hardened with iron minerals, especially magnetite. Its mineralized teeth withstand repeated scraping against rock.
Bivalvia: The molluscan class of clams, oysters, mussels, and scallops, which lack a radula. Bivalves feed without the toothed ribbon found in most other mollusks.
Radular teeth: The minute hardened projections arranged in rows on a mollusk's radula. Their shape and arrangement determine how the radula handles food.
Predatory gastropods: Gastropods that capture and consume animal prey. Some use specialized radular teeth to pierce prey or draw it into the mouth.
Cone snail harpoon: A hollow, venom-bearing radular tooth used by cone snails to capture prey. It is a striking transformation of an individual radular tooth into a projectile.
Molluscan gill: A respiratory organ in mollusks that can also assist with filter feeding. Many bivalves collect suspended food with their gills rather than scraping with a radula.
Radular sac: A pocket in which new radular teeth form and the radular ribbon is stored. It produces replacement teeth as the exposed end wears away.
Cone snail: A predatory marine gastropod that uses a modified radular tooth to deliver venom. Its radular tooth functions as a disposable, harpoon-like weapon.

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