Survival of Southern Hard Clams in Refrigerated Storage

摘要

Hard clam (quahog) fishing along the southeastern coasts of the United States has been a traditional fishery, but recent levels of production suggest the present resource may be underutilized. Commercial hard clams harvested in Florida are primarily the northern quahog, Mercenaria mercenaria, and the southern quahog Mercenaria campechiensis. The marketability of these hard clams has been hampered by limited survival when placed in common refrigeration. The problem has been previously noted in earlier mariculture studies tolerant of cold refrigeration temperatures. Wholesalers combat the problem with local distribution which can be limited, seasonal, and less profitable. The objective of the study was to investigate survival of (southern) hard clams in variable conditions and refrigeration temperatures.