''Spisula sachalinensis'' (

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

: , or , ; Uilta: ), the Sakhalin surf clam, is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

of edible saltwater

clam Clam is a common name for several kinds of bivalve mollusc. The word is often applied only to those that are deemed edible and live as infauna, spending most of their lives halfway buried in the sand of the sea floor or riverbeds. Clams h ...

in the family

Mactridae Mactridae, common name the trough shells or duck clams, is a family (biology), family of saltwater clams, marine (ocean), marine bivalve mollusks in the order (biology), order Venerida. Description These clams have two short siphons, each with a ...

, the surf clams or trough clams. It is commonly referred to as surf clam or Arctic surf clam, though the latter can also refer to the closely related '' Mactromeris polynyma'' (Stimpson's surf clam). The species is commercially exploited and widely used for

sushi is a traditional Japanese dish made with , typically seasoned with sugar and salt, and combined with a variety of , such as seafood, vegetables, or meat: raw seafood is the most common, although some may be cooked. While sushi comes in n ...

in Japan.孔宁,李琪,丛日浩,王庆�
库页岛厚蛤蜊的人工繁殖和胚胎发育
海洋科学,2011,(10):6-10 The species is found in

Tomakomai, Hokkaido is a Cities of Japan, city and seaports of Japan, port in Iburi Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. It is the largest city in the Iburi Subprefecture, and the fourth largest city in Hokkaido. As of 31 July 2023, it had an estimated population of ...

, and numerous other areas.

Nomenclature

In Japan, the technical name is ''ubagai'' ("old woman's clam"). However, in the

Hokkaido is the list of islands of Japan by area, second-largest island of Japan and comprises the largest and northernmost prefectures of Japan, prefecture, making up its own list of regions of Japan, region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō fr ...

region, it is called ''hokkigai'' ("northern clam"). In the

Ainu language Ainu (, ), or more precisely Hokkaido Ainu (), is a language spoken by a few elderly members of the Ainu people on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido. It is a member of the Ainu language family, itself considered a language family isola ...

, it is called ''poksey'' or ''tutturep''.

Description

Arctic surf clams grow to around 10 cm, and can live up to 30 years in shallow waters.

As food

Arctic surf clam is eaten in Japan, usually as

sashimi is a Japanese cuisine, Japanese delicacy consisting of fresh raw fish or Raw meat, meat sliced into thin pieces and often eaten with soy sauce. Origin The word ''sashimi'' means 'pierced body', i.e., "wikt:刺身, 刺身" = ''sashimi'', whe ...

. The foot of the clam is black when raw, but turns characteristically red when cooked. It can also be used in rice dishes like ''

takikomi gohan is a Japanese rice dish seasoned with dashi and soy sauce and mixed with mushrooms, vegetables, meat, or fish. The ingredients are cooked together with the rice. The dish is consumed by people in Japan around the fall season since many root veg ...

''. In the city of

Tomakomai is a city and port in Iburi Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. It is the largest city in the Iburi Subprefecture, and the fourth largest city in Hokkaido. As of 31 July 2023, it had an estimated population of 167,372, with 83,836 households, an ...

, where the most surf clams are caught in Japan, the clam is also made into a

curry Curry is a dish with a sauce or gravy seasoned with spices, mainly derived from the interchange of Indian cuisine with European taste in food, starting with the Portuguese, followed by the Dutch and British, and then thoroughly internatio ...

. 壽司郎, 迴轉壽司, スシロー, 台北, 台灣, Taipei, Taiwan (46351373685).jpg, '' Nigirizushi'' with surf clam (''hokkigai'') ホッキ貝刺身丼（みなと食堂・陸奥湊・八戸市）20221203-P1007326.jpg, Rice with raw surf clam 北寄飯 (32871646727).jpg, Rice with cooked surf clam

References

External links

More information on the species
Mactridae Molluscs described in 1862 Molluscs of Japan {{bivalve-stub