Clams and Oysters
Clams and Oysters are water animals that are found all over the world in oceans and freshwater. Different clams and oysters are found in warm tropical waters while others are in the deepest parts of the ocean. Some clams and oysters are found in the bottom underneath the gross sandy bottom. Others are found stuck to the bottom of a pier or boat. As you can tell, clams and oysters are found different places around the world. Just remember clams and oysters have to have water to live.
Clams and oysters are very important for humans and the environment. They are a food source in the ocean as well as for humans on land. Clams and oysters are filter feeders, so they keep the ocean clean by filtering out all the dead gross material floating in the water. Humans also use oysters to find the pearls which are used for jewelry and decorations. The clam and oyster's shell can be used for tools and containers too. Also you can't forget about finding the clams and oyster's washed up shell on the beach. Clams and Oysters give humans and the environment a lot of stuff. They help in a lot of ways.
Clams and Oysters are a very special animal for many reasons. They both have very soft bodies. They also have hard shells which protect them from enemies. These hard shells are almost the same size and shape. They are able to open and shut when they think an enemy is near. Clams and Oysters are also pests to humans. Many clams and oysters contain bad stuff that can cause sickness when eaten by humans. Another fact about clams and oysters is that they are dying because of pollution.
All Clams and Oysters have the same basic body plan. The only difference is that they vary in size. Some clams are as small as 1/16th of an inch while another weighs close to 300 pounds. The environment decides how the shell grows. All Clams and Oysters have a head, foot, gut, mantle, and shell. The shell is the outer covering that protects the clam from enemies. The gut is the digestive track. The mantle is the oyster's skin that protects its intestinal organs. The head serves no purpose because it has no eyes or tentacles. The foot comes out from the front to the end between the shells and it is used for burrowing in the sand and sometimes even to swim.
Many hunters in the big deep ocean don't use their eyes. They use a sense we don't have called a "chemical" sense. Clams and oysters do not know how to use these "chemical" senses. Squid, cuttlefish, and octopuses do though. They have very big eyes, which help them see very well in the big dark blue ocean. They are the most advanced of the "invertebrates". That means an animal with no backbone. Isn't that just cool? Here's something else that is really cool! The eyes of squid also have the ability to zoom in and out. Much like your very own pair of binoculars! Isn't that just cool? Wouldn't that be awesome! Wait till you hear this! The largest eyes of any creature belong to the Giant Squid. It uses them to find food in the deep dark parts of the bottom of the big blue ocean. They are the size of large dinner plates, and if that's not just cool, I just don't know what is!
There are many cool types of clams and oysters. One of these is the razor clam. It is called a razor clam because of its sharp shell. A cool oyster is the clapper. It is called the clapper because it makes a clapping noise when it is hit. Also another sweet clam is the giant clam. It is called the giant clam because of its humongous size. The giant clam can weigh 440 pounds! Some common examples of mollusks in general are the squid, octopi, clams, oysters, scallops, slugs, and snails. They include 23% of stuff in the ocean.
Clams have two small openings in their shells called siphons. Tiny hairs called Celia beat in and out to create a current. This current sucks in food through one hole. They enter the intake siphon, and exit back out of the other hole called the outtake siphon. On the way through, the bits that were sucked in go down into the stomach where the good parts are digested and any waste left over is taken back out by the outtake hole.
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Clams and Oysters eat little plants and animals. Clams and Oysters use filter feeding to eat the small animal's and dead gross things floating in the water. Filter feeding is when the animal separates matter and food particles from the water. This happens when it goes through a special filter that each animal has. As you can see, clams and oysters will eat anything that is small enough for them to swallow.
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How do clams breathe? Well, when water comes into the clam through a tube called a siphon, little slits in the clam called gills suck in the oxygen and get rid of the other stuff. The other stuff then goes through another tube back into the water.
When clams are born, they start out as boys. However, as they grow up they become girls! Clams can have children whenever they want. The boy clams release sperm into the water and girls release eggs into the water. When the sperm and the eggs meet, they become baby clams. The baby clams, called veligers, are only about the size of a tip of a needle. They feed in the water until they grow up, and then they attach to rocks and begin the cycle all over again.
Clams have two main nerves in their bodies, one attached to the internal organs and the other attached to the foot. Clams can feel around to find their surroundings with the help of little tentacles on their heads. Some clams even have eyes. Clams have a combination of an open circulatory system and a closed one. It is part closed because it has a heart and an artery, and is part open because the heart pumps the blood through the entire body, instead of using veins.
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