soft-shell clam

Soft-shell clam
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Bivalvia
Order:	Myoida
Family:	Myidae
Genus:	Mya (Linnaeus, 1758)
Species:	M. arenaria
Binomial name
Mya arenaria

Soft-shell clams, scientific name Mya arenaria, popularly called "steamers", "softshells", "longnecks", "piss clams" or "Ipswich clams", are a species of edible saltwater clam, a marine bivalve mollusk in the family Myidae.

These clams live buried in the mud on tidal mudflats. They are well-known as a food item on the coast of New England in the Western Atlantic Ocean, however the range extends much farther north to Canada and south to the Southern states.

They are also found in the Eastern Atlantic Ocean, for example in the UK.

This species has become an invasive on the Pacific Coast of North America, including Alaska, Canada and the continental USA.[1]

Physiology

A sea otter at Moss Landing, California, eating what appear to be Mya arenaria

M. arenaria has a calcium carbonate shell, which is very thin and easily broken, hence the name "soft-shells" (as opposed to its beach-dwelling neighbors, the thick-shelled quahog).

This clam is found living approximately 6–10 inches under the surface of the mud. It extends its paired siphons up to the surface; these are used to draw in seawater that is filtered for food and expelled. The holes in the mud through which the water is drawn in and out can often be seen at low tide. Water may be visibly ejected from the siphon tips when pressure is applied to the surrounding mud. This makes the clams easier to locate when humans are hunting for them during clam digging.

Predators

As well as falling prey to humans, this clam is apparently relished by sea otters in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, where the clam is an invasive species (see image above). In New England the Soft-shell clam is preyed heavily upon by invasive green crabs.

Cooking

Soft-shell clams are edible and can be enjoyed in a variety of dishes. Before cooking, it is generally recommended that clams be stored in saltwater for a few days to facilitate the expulsion of sand from their digestive tracts. Some recommend that cornmeal be added to the water to give the clams something to filter from it.

Soft-shell clams can be eaten steamed, fried, or in clam chowder. "Steamers" (steamed soft-shell clams) are an integral part of the New England clam bake, where they are served steamed whole in the shell, then pulled from the shell at the table and dipped, first in the clam broth in which they were cooked, to rinse away sand, and then in melted butter.

Scientific literature

• Gallant, D., A. Poulin, & E. Tremblay (2006). Évaluation statistique et optimisation du programme de monitoring de la mye commune (Mya arenaria) au parc national du Canada Kouchibouguac. Parcs Canada – Rapports techniques en matière de sciences des écosystèmes, 045, ix + 67p. (in French with English abstract; ISBN 0-662-71418-0, ISSN 1200-3298)

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