Mya arenaria   Linnaeus, 1758

Softshell clam

Native range | All suitable habitat | Point map | Year 2050
This map was computer-generated and has not yet been reviewed.
Mya arenaria  AquaMaps  Data sources: GBIF OBIS
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Mya arenaria

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | CoL | ITIS | WoRMS

Bivalvia | Myida | Myidae

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Benthic; brackish; depth range 0 - 192 m (Ref. 78574), usually 0 - 25 m (Ref. 75831).  Temperate, preferred 9°C (Ref. 107945); 77°N - 33°N, 180°W - 180°E (Ref. 113928)

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Introductions

Northwest Atlantic from Nova Scotia to Virginia, North Sea and European waters including the Black, Baltic, Wadden, White and Mediterranean seas, and northeast Pacific from San Francisco to Alaska.

Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm Max length : 10.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 7726); max. reported age: 8 years (Ref. 2823)

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Minimum depth from Ref. 101279. Maximum depth recorded is 329 m (Ref. 101279).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Members of the class Bivalvia are mostly gonochoric, some are protandric hermaphrodites. Life cycle: Embryos develop into free-swimming trocophore larvae, succeeded by the bivalve veliger, resembling a miniature clam.

Main reference References | Coordinator | Collaborators

Harvey-Clark, C. 1997. (Ref. 7726)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)


CITES status (Ref. 108899)

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

Human uses

Fisheries: commercial
FAO - Aquaculture: production; Fisheries: landings | FishSource | Sea Around Us

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More information

Trophic Ecology
Food items
Diet
Food consumption
Ration
Predators
Ecology
Ecology
Home ranges
Population dynamics
Growth
Age/Size
Length-weight
Length-length
Length-frequencies
Mass conversion
Recruitment
Abundance
Life cycle
Reproduction
Maturity
Fecundity
Spawning
Eggs
Egg development
Larvae
Larval dynamics
Human Related
Aquaculture profile
Stamps, Coins Misc.
Outreach
Taxonomy
References

Internet sources

BHL | BOLD Systems | CISTI | DiscoverLife | FAO(Fisheries: ; publication : search) | Fishipedia | GenBank (genome, nucleotide) | GloBI | Gomexsi | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | PubMed | Tree of Life | Wikipedia (Go, Search) | Zoological Record

Estimates based on models

Preferred temperature (Ref. 115969): 6.4 - 14.5, mean 10.9 (based on 360 cells).
Resilience (Ref. 69278): Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (K=0.14-0.48; tmax=8).
Vulnerability (Ref. 71543): Moderate vulnerability (36 of 100).
Price category (Ref. 80766): High.
Nutrients :  Calcium = 149 [71, 228] mg/100g; Iron = 8.53 [1.95, 15.11] mg/100g; Protein = 9.88 [8.64, 11.12] %; Omega3 = 0.313 [0.202, 0.423] g/100g; Selenium = 61 [50, 72] μg/100g; VitaminA = 0 μg/100g; Zinc = 2.04 [0.56, 3.51] mg/100g (wet weight); based on nutrient studies.