Thursday, June 23, 2011

Padre Island Coquina Clams

Coquina - Donax variablis, is a clam that is common from Virginia down the Atlantic to the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico. In some areas it is extremely abundant (Padre Island, TX) but in other areas rare (Galveston Island, TX). They are easily found at the low tide line and can be so dense that they leave no space in between each other. During my last visit to Padre Island National Seashore I observed thousands and thousands of these very interesting and beautiful bivalves. The clams are quite variable, hence the specific name, and can be found in light blue, green, light purple, pink, yellow, orange, striped, and white. While I walked down the beach I found a quite a few whole Coquina shells which I collected.

Here is the range of colors I found. The left two rows are the insides of the shells which are just as colorful as the outer surface of the shells.

The most abundant color I found on Padre Island is white, followed by light blues, then yellow, orange, pink and striped. I also found one that looked greenish. My favorite ones are the bottom left hand side with the striped sun-ray pattern.

The inside of the shell shows rich colors.

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