Document Type
Report
Department/Program
Virginia Institute of Marine Science
Publication Date
1994
Series
VSG-94-11
Abstract
Two species of arkshell or "blood" clams, "Noetia ponderosa" (ponderous ark) and "Anadara ovalis" (blood ark), have been harvested by watermen on the Eastern shore in Virginia since 1991. There is little information on the life history of these species in Virginia waters. The intensive harvesting of blood clams and paucity of data on important factors such as distribution, densities, growth rates, and size-age relationships present a problem for management of the fishery. The primary purpose of this study is to provide some basic information on blood clams for management of the fishery. We focused on age-size relationships and growth rates of clams. Some data were also collected on densities of blood clams and size-frequency distributions in fisheries and non-fisheries samples, as well as some morphometric data.
Keywords
Clams -- Virginia, Clam fisheries -- Virginia -- Management
Recommended Citation
McGraw, K. A., & Castagna, M. (1994) Some observations on arkshell clams, Noetia ponderosa and Anadara ovalis, and implications for fisheries management. VSG-94-11. Virginia Institute of Marine Science, William & Mary. https://scholarworks.wm.edu/reports/2812
