{{Short description|Species of bivalve}} {{Use mdy dates|date=September 2024}} {{Speciesbox | name = Windowpane oyster | image = Capizshell.jpg | image_alt = A cleaned shell of the capiz ready for processing, with the V-shaped ligament ridge showing | image_caption = A cleaned shell of the capiz ready for processing, with the V-shaped ligament ridge showing | taxon = Placuna placenta | authority = (Linnaeus, 1758) | synonyms = ''Anomia placenta'' <small>Linnaeus, 1758</small> | synonyms_ref = <ref name=WoRMS/> }}
The '''windowpane oyster''', '''window shell''', or '''jingle shell''' ('''''Placuna placenta''''') is a bivalve marine mollusk in the family of Placunidae.<ref name=WoRMS/><ref>{{GBIF |title=''Placuna placenta'' (Linnaeus, 1758) |id=5729483 |access-date=October 8, 2021 |language=en}}</ref> It is edible, but valued more for its shell (and its rather small pearls). The oyster's shells have been used for thousands of years as a glass substitute because of their durability and translucence. More recently, they have been used in the manufacture of decorative items such as chandeliers and lampshades. In the Philippines, the shell is known as the '''capiz shell''' (''kapis'').<ref name="MSL">{{cite web |first=Clare |last=Campbell |url=https://www.malacsoc.org.uk/malacological_bulletin/Mini-Reviews/3Aquaculture/Aquaculture.htm |title=Fisheries and aquaculture of window-pane shells |publisher=Malacological Society of London |access-date=15 September 2025 }}</ref> Capiz shells are also used as raw materials for glue, chalk and varnish.
Distribution extends from the shallows of the Gulf of Aden to around the Philippines (including the eponymous province of Capiz) north to Taiwan and south to Queensland, Australia. The mollusks are found in muddy or sandy shores, in bays, coves and lagoons to a depth of about {{convert|100|m|abbr=on}}.<ref name="FAO Poutiers"/>
Populations have been in decline because of destructive methods of fishing and gathering such as trawling, dredging, blast fishing and surface-supplied diving. In the Philippines, fisheries are now regulated through permits, quotas, size limits and protected habitats. In spite of this, resources continue to be depleted.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Park|first1=Monica|title=Capiz Shells and Their Uses |url=http://ecop.pbworks.com/w/page/18520528/Capiz%20shells%20and%20their%20uses%200809#SurvivabilityandEndangeredStatus|access-date=September 14, 2015}}</ref>
The nearly flat shells of the capiz can grow to {{convert|180|mm|abbr=on}} in diameter,<ref name="FAO Poutiers"/> reaching maturity between {{convert|70|and|100|mm|abbr=on}}. The shell is secured by a V-shaped ligament. Males and females are distinguished by the color of the gonads. Fertilization is external and larvae are free-swimming like plankton for 14 days or attached to surfaces via byssal thread during metamorphosis, eventually settling on the bottom.<ref name="MSL"/> They consume plankton filtered from the water passing through their slightly opened shell; the oyster's shell closes when the bivalve is above water during low tide.<ref name="MSL" />
==The capiz industry of Samal, Philippines== {{Further information|Capiz shell window}}
Aside from being abundant in the province of Capiz, capiz shells are also abundant in the island of Samal in the Philippines, where 500 tons of capiz shells are harvested every other year.
The capiz shells found around the island are harvested and transformed into various decorative products. As late as 2005, the residents of the island were trained to sustain the industry. However, the transfer of institutional knowledge to new generations to maintain the industry is in danger of being lost.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://business.inquirer.net/62617/after-jessica-sanchez-samals-capiz-products-now-in-limelight|title=After Jessica Sanchez, Samal's capiz products now in limelight|last=Gonzaga|first=Robert|website=business.inquirer.net|date=May 31, 2012 |language=en|access-date=December 9, 2019}}</ref>
<gallery mode="packed" heights="150px" caption="Items using Ibiza shells"> File:672Parish San Jose Bamboo Organ Las Piñas Church 39.jpg|A chandelier in Las Piñas Church File:Simple capiz parol.jpg|A parol File:MuseoSanPablojf7215 06.JPG|A decorative mobile at the Museo de San Pablo in San Pablo, Laguna File:Calasiao Church convent -- window.JPG|Traditional windows with sliding panes at the convent of Calasiao Church File:Trinoma capiz shells stoops Mary Mother of Hope Chapel The Landmark2.jpg|A stoup </gallery>
==See also== * Oyster * Parol *Bahay na bato * Philippine Arts
==References== {{Commons category multi|Placuna placenta|Capiz windows in the Philippines}} {{Reflist|refs= <ref name="FAO Poutiers">{{cite book |last=Poutiers |first=J. M. |title=''The living marine resources of the Western Central Pacific Volume 1.'' Seaweeds, corals, bivalves and gastropods |editor=Carpenter, K. E. |editor2=Niem, V. H. |publisher=FAO |location=Rome |date=1998 |series=FAO Species Identification Guide for Fishery Purposes |volume=1 |page=218 |chapter=Bivalves (Acephala, Lamellibranchia, Pelecypoda) |isbn=92-5-104052-4 |url=https://openknowledge.fao.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/bc6ef027-119d-457e-9770-5b8c068d62c6/content }}</ref>
<ref name=WoRMS>{{cite WoRMS |title=''Placuna placenta'' (Linnaeus, 1758) |year=2025 |id=367820 |db=MolluscaBase |access-date=15 September 2025}}</ref> }}
{{Oysters}} {{Edible molluscs}} {{Taxonbar|from=Q3024105}}
Category:Placunidae Category:Commercial molluscs Category:Bivalves described in 1758 Category:Animal taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Category:Oysters Category:Edible molluscs Category:Philippine handicrafts Category:Building materials Category:Windows Category:Molluscs of the Indian Ocean Category:Molluscs of the Pacific Ocean