![]() ![]() The siphons draw in water, which is then passed through the gills where plankton is filtered out for food. Hard clams will extend their siphons out from their shell in order to feed. Once they find a suitable surface, they will anchor themselves and metamorphose into juveniles, developing gills, siphons, and a digestive system. During this time, larva will grow a foot which is used to find a surface to settle on. Free-swimming larvae hatch from the fertilized eggs over the next one to two weeks. Females can produce close to five million eggs during spawning events and release them into the water column where they are fertilized by sperm that the male clams have released. Spawning occurs from late spring into fall, when water temperatures are between 68 and 73 degrees Fahrenheit. ![]() This species lives from 12-20 years on average but can live for up to 40 years. The species usually measures between three and five inches. Adults are sessile, meaning they stay in one place, but they will burrow into sediment using their foot. Hard clams contain a foot, along with a set of siphons, used for respiration and gathering food. The inside of the shell is white with areas of violet color. The outside of their thick shells ranges from gray to white in color, with concentric growth lines. Both halves of their shell are of a relative size and are triangular in shape. Hard clams are bivalve mollusks that have a two-part thick, hinged shell. ![]()
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