Ocean Quahog
Ocean Quahog
Invertebrate
The ocean quahog is a deep-sea clam that can live for more than 500 years, carrying its great age in the rings of its shell.
💡 Fun Facts
- A species of edible clam that lives incredibly long.
- One individual, named 'Ming', was verified to be 507 years old.
- You can tell their age by counting the rings on their shell.
Name Story
Arctica islandica
means “the northern clam of Iceland”
What does its name mean?
- Arctica — northern — from the word for the Great Bear, the star-pattern of the northGreek (arktos, 'bear')
- islandica — of IcelandLatin
- quahog — a native North American name for a hard-shelled clamNarragansett (poquauhock)
Its name carries a lovely thread: "Arctica" comes from the word for the bear — and the Great Bear in the sky points north, so the clam, the Arctic and the bear all share one word. Astonishingly, this slow, cold-water clam is the longest-lived animal of its kind known — one was found to be around 500 years old.