This particular variety of clam (Tridacna species), with its brilliant blue mantle, is a common sight on shallow Philippine reefs. It measures about six inches from end to end. In this photo the fleshy mantle is entirely exposed, but patience is required to see the clam in this state-- the clam will abruptly close its shell with only a minor change in light, such as a shadow. Specialized cells called ocelli along the outer edge of the mantle are responsible for light reception.

About this image

Identification
Tridacna
Location

Tubba-taha reef, Sulu Sea, Philippines.

Contributors
Jeffrey N. Jeffords
photographer copyright holder identification
Subjects

Conditions of use

Creative Commons License This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License .

To cite this page: Jeffords, J. 2004. "clam_Tridacna.jpg" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed {%B %d, %Y} at https://animaldiversity.org/collections/contributors/jeffrey_jeffords/misc.inverts/clam_Tridacna/

Last updated: 2004-35-14 / Generated: 2025-09-15 02:01

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