Clam is a common name for several kinds of bivalve molluscs. The word is often applied only to those that are edible and live as infauna, spending most of their lives halfway buried in the sand of the seafloor or riverbeds. Clams have two shells of equal size connected by two adductor muscles and have a powerful burrowing foot. They live in both freshwater and marine environments; in salt water they prefer to burrow down into the mud and the turbidity of the water required varies with species and location; the greatest diversity of these is in North America.
Clams in the culinary sense do not live attached to a substrate (whereas oysters and mussels do) and do not live near the bottom (whereas scallops do). In culinary usage, clams are commonly eaten marine bivalves, as in clam digging and the resulting soup, clam chowder. Many edible clams such as palourde clams are ovoid or triangular; however, razor clams have an elongated parallel-sided shell, suggesting an old-fashioned straight razor.
Some clams have life cycles of only one year, while at least one has been aged to over 500 years old. All clams have two calcareous shells or valves joined near a hinge with a flexible ligament and all are filter feeders.
A clam's shell consists of two (usually equal) valves, which are connected by a hinge joint and a ligament that can be internal or external. The ligament provides tension to bring the valves apart, while one or two adductor muscles can contract to close the valves. Clams also have kidneys, a heart, a mouth, a stomach, and a nervous system. Many have a siphon.
Food source and ecology
Clams are shellfish that make up an important part of the web of life that keeps the seas functioning, both as filter feeders and as a food source for many different animals. Extant mammals that eat clams would include both the Pacific and Atlantic species of walrus, all known subspecies of harbor seals in both the Atlantic and Pacific, most species of sea lions, including the California sea lion, bearded seals and even species of river otters that will consume the freshwater species found in Asia and North America. Birds of all kinds will also eat clams if they can catch them in the littoral zone: roseate spoonbills of North and South America, the Eurasian oystercatcher, whooping crane and common crane, the American flamingo of Florida and the Caribbean Sea, and the common sandpiper are just a handful of the numerous birds that feast on clams all over the world. Most species of octopus have clams as a staple of their diet, up to and including the giants like the Giant Pacific octopus.
If you want to read more, go here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clam
- 12 ounces linguine pasta, uncooked, broken in half
- 1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes
- 1 onion, thinly sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 4 1/2 cups chicken broth
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
- Grated Parmesan cheese for sprinkling
- In a soup pot, place linguine, tomatoes, onion, and garlic. Pour in chicken broth and sprinkle with oregano, crushed red pepper, and salt. Drizzle top with oil and cover.
- Bring to a boil over medium high heat, reduce heat to low, and simmer 10 minutes, stirring every 2 to 3 minutes, or until liquid is almost gone. Stir in basil and serve garnished with Parmesan cheese.
Klutz: most commonly referred to as a clumsy person.
HOW TO OBSERVE
- Laugh at yourself. Share your mortifying stories of kitchen failure over take out Thai or pizza.
- Give your favorite Kitchen Klutz the gift of cooking classes.
- Watch your favorite cooking flops show.
