Introduced Marine Aquatic Invaders - a field guide

Introducted Marine Species - Chinese Clam

Potamocorbula amurensis

Chinese Clam - Potamocorbula amurensis Photo: Janet Thompson/ United States Geological Society

Australia Invasion

• no current record of invasion

Habitat

• tropical and temperate waters
• subtidal zone - generally in shallower water where they bury themselves in large densities
• settle on either mud, sand, peat or clay substrates
  

A sediment sample containing a very large amount of Chinese clams. Photo: Janet Thompson/ United States Geological Society

ID Features

• shell white, tan or yellow in colour
• up to 3 cm in length
• shell valves (halves) unequal in size and shape
• smaller, flatter left shell valve fits inside larger, more swollen, right shell valve
• external keel runs along posterior end of left shell valve, with a less pronounced one on the right shell valve

More information

More detailed information on this Marine Invader is available here.

...More Information on this Invader

Similar Native Marine Species

There are about 15 species of native corbulid clams with which the Chinese clam could be confused. Most of these native species are much smaller than the Chinese Clam although some do reach up to 2 cm in length. Almost all of these have similarly unequal valves, with the left fitting into the right, and all live subtidally on soft substrates. These similarities make it difficult to provide characteristics which easily distinguish the Chinese clam from native corbulid clams.

The best way to improve your ability to identify the Chinese clam is, ironically, to become familiar with the native clams in the marine environment in which you work or play. If you are familiar with the native clam species, it will then be easier to identify any unfamiliar clams, such as the Chinese clam, which may be introduced.