Biology of the Atlantic Jacknife ( Razor ) Clam ( Ensis directus Conrad , 1843 ) Dale

mon name “razor clam”. They gain that moniker due to their overall shape of being long and thin, in the nature of an old-time straight razor. Many species of razor clams are favorably recognized for their taste and texture and have been commercially harvested throughout the world. More recently, interest has been rising about developing methods to farm razor clams. It is important to understand key aspects of the clam’s basic biology and natural history before one can start to grow them successfully under controlled conditions. One species that has been identified as having high potential for aquaculture is the Atlantic jack knife or American razor clam, Ensis directus (Figure 1, also identified as Ensis americanus in Europe). A native of the Atlantic seaboard of North America, the Razor clam ranges from Labrador to South Carolina. Our knowledge of this razor clam is somewhat enigmatic given that the bulk of the information on E. directus in North America was published during the turn of the 20th century. The majority of recent information about the razor clam has been published as studies of E. americanus, following its introduction into waters of the German Bight in 1978. Since that introduction, the clam has spread through the North Sea coastline from the English Channel to Sweden and has become a dominant bivalve species in the intertidal areas within that range. Anatomy