The Southern Surf Clam
Spisula raveneli (Conrad, 1832)
Family Mactridae
Below is a photo of the first medium sized surfclam I found on S. Hutchinson Island on my beach. Since the fall of 2020 I've found over a hundered versions in a variety of colors.
Dark Southern Surfclam (S. Hutchinson Island- October, 2020)
The Southern Surf Clam, Spisula raveneli (Conrad, 1832), is the closest relative of the Northern Surf Clam, a species widely used in clambakes and other specialties of the New England culinary. Surf Clams are also related to the Smooth and Channeled Duck Clams, two species previously featured in this weekly column. The Southern Surf Clam may grow to be 5.5 inches in size. Its young (see figure) are often found along the beaches of Southwest Florida, and sometimes may be confused by the casual collector with other species of small clams. Surf Clams belong to the family Mactridae, a group of bivalve mollusks readily distinguishable by the presence of any internal ligament that sits inside a cup-shaped depression called a chondrophore (see figure.)
Southern Surf Clam (s. Hutchinson Island- January, 2021)