Page:American Seashells (1954).djvu/552

454 fined radial ridges near the center of the valves. Common in mud in cold waters offshore. Vanomya ampla Dall Ample Rough Mya Aleutian Islands to Puget Sound, Washington. 2 to 3 inches in length. A peculiarly distorted, heavy shell which is much gaping at both ends. Anterior end crudely pointed; posterior broadly truncate. With 3 to 6 depressed scars on the white interior. Exterior con- centrically roughened, ash-white in color, with a border of thick, irregular, black periostracum. Hinge without definite teeth. Uncommon offshore in cold water. Genus Panope Menard 1807 Panope generosa Gould Geoduck (Goo-ee-duck) Alaska to the Gulf of California. 7 to 9 inches in length. Inflated, sHghtly elongate and rather thick- shelled. Gaping at both ends. Coarse, concentric, wavy sculpture present, especially noticeable near the small, central, depressed beaks. Periostracum thin and yellowish. Exterior of shell dirty-white to cream; interior semi- glossy and white. Hinge with a single, large, horizontal thickening. The 2 long, united siphons of the animal are half the weight of the entire clam. Common in mud 2 or 3 feet deep in the northwestern states. Edible but tough. Freaks have been named soJida Dall, globosa Dall and taeiiiata Dall. For an interesting and well-illustrated account of this species, see Natural History Magazine (N.Y.), April, 1948, on "We Go Gooeyducking" by the Milnes. Panope bitriincata Conrad from North Carolina to Florida is 5 to 6 inches in length and resembles the Pacific geoduck. Dead valves are rarely found, and I have never seen a live specimen. Possibly extinct. Super jamily MY ACE A Family MY ACID AE Genus Mya Linne 1758 These are the soft-shell or "steamer" clams which are so popular in New England. The valves are slightly unequal in size and have a large posterior gape. Resilium internal, placed posterior to the beaks and attached in the left valve to a horizontally projecting chondrophore.