Gooey Duck

Gooey Duck

Gooey Ducks grow to about two pounds in four or five years and achieve full mass in about 15 years (shell size about 6 inches, weight 10 to 14 pounds).

The geoduck are found in coastal waters from California to Alaska and are most abundant in Puget Sound and British Columbia

Infantile gooey ducks burrow into sediments about a foot each year and commonly settle in at about three feet. They live in low intertidal and subtidal zones at depths of 10 to 80 feet typically, but reaching depths up to 360 feet. Densities can exceed 20 clams per square meter in best habitats.

Environmental Threats: Water quality issues, both natural and man-made problems, seem to be the chief environmental threats. Because most bivalves are filter feeders, they consume microscopic plant and animal substance from the water and may ingest and concentrate toxins which are dangerous to humans if consumed. Harsh storms may abolish local populations, either directly due to wave action on exposed coastlines, or indirectly due to lowered salinity levels.

Common name: Geoduck

Scientific name: Panopea Abrupta

Distinctive features: The shell covers only a small portion of the geoduck’s tubby body or “siphon”

Predators: fishes, worms, snails, starfish, and crabs.

Diet: Eats algae

Life expectancy: Can live up to 150 years!

• Geoducks called the “elephant trunk clam” by the Chinese, sells as a delicacy for $10 or more per pound in China?

• Geoducks are prized foods in food markets worldwide and are a highly valued fishery for the state (Puget Sound), estimated at $40 million annually.