coquina

Noun

coquina (countable and uncountable, plural coquinas)

1. (countable) Any of several small marine clams, of the species Donax variabilis, common in United States coastal waters.
   • The pretty little coquinas (genus Donax, family Donacidae), often called butterfly shells or wedge shells, are distributed throughout the world. Perhaps the most noted species is the small Donax variabilis Say, so commonly found on the beaches of Florida. Coquinas live in droves just beneath the...1974, Elva D. Sheets, The Fascinating World of the Sea: Circling the Globe for the Wild Seashell, New York, N.Y.: Crown Publishers, →ISBN, page 122
   • They were filled with "coquinas," tiny butterfly-shaped clam shells that gleamed with all the colors of the rainbow. Mario poured the sand and its brilliant treasure into my hands. I stared at the beauty and thought about God, Sabbath, and friends. A few weeks earlier this day had been an ugly...1995, Ray Dabrowski, editor, Images of Mission: Seventh-day Adventists, People of Faith, Love, Courage, and Hope, Silver Spring, Md.: Communication Department, General Conference of Seventh-day...
2. (uncountable) A soft form of limestone made of fragments of shells, sometimes used as a building or road paving material.
   • The isthmus is nowhere more than about 8 or 9 feet above the water surface. The top soil is generally sand, with underlying coquina rock—a conglomerate of small broken shells held together by some natural cement.1882, “[Appendix] J15. Survey of the North End of Indian River with a View to Its Connection, by the Haulover, with Mosquito Lagoon.”, in Annual Report of the Secretary of War for the Year 1882. In...
   • [“The Town”, page 22] In former times, most of the houses were of coquina (a loose shell-stone, quarried on the island opposite [Anastasia Island]), but this material is now almost entirely superseded by wood. Roomy and moder wooden houses may not so picturesque as the weather-stained coquina...1885, “‘The Town’; ‘Fort Marion’”, in E[dward] H[enry] Reynolds, editor, The Standard Guide to St. Augustine and Fort Marion. Practical Information for Tourists, Descriptions of All Points of...