Giant+Clams

The Giant Clam (//Tridacna gigas//) media type="youtube" key="ZBfviWg7kKM" height="205" width="255"

The Giant Clam is the largest mollusk in the world. It can weigh over 500 lbs and reach up to 4 ft in length. It spends its days basking in the sunlight. It has a mutualistic relationship with zooxanthellae algae living in their tissues. The algae use sunlight to provide nutrients and the clam supplies other nutrients and protection to the algae. The clam also eats a bit of the algae from time to time. They inhabit the southwestern Pacific Ocean. Algae and plankton make up the vast majority of the clam's diet. The clam has many eyes on its surface that it uses to check for predators. When the eyes sense new shadows, the clam closes to protect itself.

 They have been rumored to catch humans unfortunate enough to get one of their limbs caught in its shell. These rumors have been dismissed as there has been no account of any giant clam based death and scientists say its mouth closes too slow to catch a human. If you're in an adventurous mood and want to try something new, giant clams are edible :-)




 * For more information on the giant clam or even other mollusks, check out our affiliates at [|National Geographic] and [|Seasky].**