What is a Geoduck?
Geoduck is the world's largest and fastest digging mollusk. As an image mussel, Living in the sea, the geoduck is one of the strangest-looking mussels. The majority of its body consists of a nose-like organ used for digging and feeding. This organ can grow up to approximately 1 meter. The Chinese call this creature the elephant trunk oyster because of its appearance. Its shell length is 15-20 cm and its average weight is approximately 1 kilo.
Where Does Geoduck Live?
Geoduck mussel lives on the North Pacific coast of the USA and Canada, in waters with an average depth of 8-120 meters, where tidal events occur frequently. It buries itself at a depth of approximately 1 meter in the seabed. Another distinctive feature of this creature is that it can survive for up to 100 years. The oldest Geoduck mussel known to date was able to live for 168 years. However, it is not thought that they can live that long due to intense hunting in line with the increasing demand today.
What Do Geoduck Mussels Eat?
When the shell part is at the deepest point, the feeding tube reaches the surface and it feeds by sucking phytoplankton (single-celled seaweed), diatoms and flagellates.
How to Catch a Geoduck
The Geoduck mussel sprays out the sea water it filters, creating a mark on the sand and revealing its location. Geoduck is easily caught by digging these areas. Professional hunters use pressurized water to widen these holes to reach the mussels. Today, the Geoduck mussel is caught when it reaches 15-20 centimeters. Geoduck mussel catching has become an industry, especially in Canada and surrounding countries. Mussels collected in these regions are served as a rich dish in important and large restaurants in Far Eastern countries. The price of a Geoduck mussel varies between 30 and 40 dollars. Canada generates approximately 4.5 million dollars of income by exporting around 15,000 tons of geoduck every year.
Can Geoduck Mussels be Eaten? What are the Benefits of Geoduck?
Geoduck has the nutritional values of other sea creatures and is eaten. It is thought that the Geoduck mussel is a cure for impotence due to its shape, and gives health and strength due to its longevity. However, these properties have not been scientifically proven. It is a very delicious food in Far Eastern countries such as China, Japan and Hong Kong.
