Surf Clam

Surf clams (Spisula solidissima) are large bivalves found in the shallow coastal waters of the US Atlantic from Nova Scotia to South Carolina, harvested by hydraulic dredge in enormous quantities. The Atlantic surf clam supports one of the largest shellfish fisheries in the United States, primarily supplying the processed seafood industry with clam strips for frying and chopped clam meat for chowder and clam sauce. Bar Harbor Foods and other New England producers use surf clam meat in their canned clam products. Ocean quahog (Arctica islandica), harvested alongside surf clam, is another large Atlantic bivalve that enters the chopped clam supply chain.