Giant clams are the largest living bivalve mollusks. Several other species of "giant clam" in the genus Tridacna are often misidentified as Tridacna gigas. These clams were known to indigenous peoples of East Asia for thousands of years and the Venetian scholar and explorer Antonio Pigafetta documented them in a journal as early as 1521.

Giant clams are best known for their large, durable shells. However, these sedentary creatures are keystone species in coral ecosystems around the world. Once falsely labeled as man-eaters, one gigas giant clam went viral for producing a massive pearl.

The giant clam (Tridacna gigas) is one of the ocean’s most remarkable bivalves, renowned for its immense size and vibrant colors. Found in the warm waters of the South Pacific and Indian Oceans, this magnificent mollusk can grow up to four feet in length and weigh over 500 pounds, making it the largest living bivalve.

Living up to its name, the giant clam is the largest living bivalve mollusk and can be identified by the iconic zig-zag shaped mantle of their shells. Learn more.

2024年7月24日 · Tridacna gigas is known as the true giant clam and is the largest of all the giant clam species, growing to sizes over a meter wide and weights in excess of 496 pounds.

One of a number of large clam species native to the shallow coral reefs of the South Pacific and Indian oceans, they can weigh more than 200 kilograms (440 lb), measure as much as 120 cm (47 in) across and have an average lifespan in the wild of over 100 years.

Learn more about the giant clam, the 500-pound mollusk that spends its life anchored to a reef. See how symbiotic relationships with algae allow them to thrive.

Giant clams are a highly regulated species, protected under the Endangered Species Act. As its name implies, the giant clam is the world’s largest living marine bivalve (clam, mussel or …

As the largest bivalve mollusc, the giant clam weighs a great average of 200kg. This unique species is found to be a wide variety of colours, created by a contrast between algae inside the clam and the clam’s natural pigment.

2023年8月31日 · As the world’s largest marine bivalve molluscs, giant clams comprise at least 12 extant species. The largest representative and heavyweight champion, Tridacna gigas, is a creature of superlatives, with some individuals growing to over 120cm in shell length and weighing over 250 kilograms.