Geoduck
| Geoduck Panopea generosa |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| A live specimen of Panopea generosa | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Bivalvia |
| Order: | Myoida |
| Family: | Hiatellidae |
| Genus: | Panopea |
| Species: | P. generosa |
| Binomial name | |
|
Panopea generosa Gould, 1850 |
|
The Pacific geoduck (/ˈɡuː.iˌdʌk/), scientific name Panopea generosa, is a species of very large, edible saltwater clam in the family Hiatellidae. The common name is derived from a Lushootseed (Nisqually) word gʷídəq.
The geoduck is native to the west coast of North America. The shell of the clam ranges from 15 centimetres (5.9 in) to over 20 centimetres (7.9 in) in length, but the extremely long siphons make the clam itself much longer than this: the "neck" or siphons alone can be 1 metre (3.3 ft) in length. The geoduck is the largest burrowing clam in the world. It is also one of the longest-living animals of any type, with a lifespan of up to 140 years; the oldest has been recorded at 168 years old.
The name geoduck is derived from a Lushootseed (Nisqually) word gʷídəq either a word composed of a first element of unknown meaning and əq meaning "genitals" (referring to the shape of the clam), or a phrase meaning "dig deep". It is sometimes known as the mud duck, king clam, or when translated literally from Chinese, the elephant-trunk clam.
Between 1983 and 2010, the scientific name of this clam was confused with that of an extinct clam, Panopea abrupta (Conrad, 1849), in the scientific literature.
Native to the west coast of Canada and the northwest coast of the United States (primarily Washington and British Columbia), these marine bivalve mollusks are the largest burrowing clams in the world, weighing in at an average of 1.5 pounds (0.68 kg) at maturity, but specimens weighing over 15 pounds (6.8 kg) and as much as 2 meters (over 6.5 ft) in length are not unheard of.
...
Wikipedia