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Post by Admin on Jun 8, 2015 4:43:06 GMT
Clam digger Don's Pismo clams. An avid clam digger Don lives in San Diego
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Post by Admin on Jun 8, 2015 5:00:41 GMT
Clam Digger Don shares his Pismo clam digging trip to an area beach with us. Dons spends his vacations crabbing and digging clams in Oregon.
Hey Bill
I finally made it down to hunt for Pismo clams yesterday. The tide peaked low at a -1.1 at 2:10pm, but due to errands, I arrived about 2:30. It was slow going at first because even with the low tide, the winter surge and waves churned things up quite a bit, so "sight" clamming was out of the question. Luckily I had my trusty metal tined rake, haha.
I actually found nothing in the first 45 minutes as I worked my way about 150 yd. down the beach, through the freezing cold water; then I hit the jackpot. I found a 6' x 6' area loaded with clams, in about knee deep water, and pulled 7 out of there in about 10-15 minutes.
I had to leave soon thereafter but not after I found two more as I worked the shoreline, heading back to my car. A total of nine big clams, the biggest being 6.5", is a great haul. My co-worker is making clam chowder from scratch, so I'm donating this batch to her and heading back down today. I'm getting some great use out of my $50 fishing license already!
On another great note, the shoreline was loaded with baby Pismo’s everywhere. It's cool because they're about the size of the nail on your ring or index finger, and you can see them trying to dig into the sand as the waves come in and out. Don
Click on the Pismo Link to view youtube video clip on preparing Pismo clams for cooking.
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Post by Admin on Jun 12, 2015 16:58:40 GMT
DFG Begins Pismo Clam Sampling in Central and Southern California
by Dave Ono, Marine Biologist
After a hiatus of many years, the Department of Fish and Game (DFG) has begun surveys of Pismo clam (Tivela stultorum) populations at beaches in central and southern California. These beaches have historically provided a fishery for thousands of recreational clammers.
In 2009, DFG biologists will conduct Pismo clam surveys at Pismo Beach in San Luis Obispo County. Pismo Beach is probably the best known clamming area for Pismo clams in the state. The last DFG Pismo clam surveys took place here in the early 1990s. The surveys showed that Pismo clam populations had begun to nosedive as sea otters continued to forage along San Luis Obispo County beaches. DFG marine biologists are interested in determining how Pismo clam stocks have fared at Pismo Beach after sharing that sandy beach environment with sea otters over the past 28 years.
An initial survey in May 2008 at Sunset State Beach in Santa Cruz County found high densities of young Pismo clams, but no evidence of harvestable, legal-sized (5-inches or larger) clams. Sunset State Beach and the adjacent Monterey County coastline is also home to foraging sea otters, which have been known to consume as many as 40 Pismo clams in two hours. The continuing presence of sea otters, along with changes in the oceanic regime that affect recruitment, may account for the absence of large, harvestable Pismo clams. Additional Pismo clam surveys have been planned for Monterey Bay beaches.
In fall 2008 DFG biologists also conducted Pismo clam surveys in Ventura and San Diego counties. Biologists targeted sites where earlier Pismo clam surveys had been performed in the mid-1990s and early 2000s by the DFG. Other popular Pismo clam beaches that historically provided significant harvests were also surveyed. Full results of the south and central coast DFG Pismo clam surveys will be presented in a future issue of Marine Management News.
For more information about DFG Pismo clam surveys, contact DFG Marine Biologist Dave Ono at 805-568-1221 or e-mail dono@dfg.ca.gov.
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Post by Admin on Jun 12, 2015 18:38:57 GMT
Click on 2009 Pismo Clam Population Assessment below to view survey. pismoclam1.pdf (132.9 KB)
CDFW comments on Pismo Clams 2006
Mystery woman scores!!!. Species Profiles: Life Histories and Environmental Requirements of Coastal Fishes and invertebrates (Pacific Southwest) PlSMO CLAM by W i l l i a m N. Shaw Humboldt State University Fred Telonicher Marine Laboratory, Tiinidad, CA 95570 and Thomas J. Hassler California Cooperative Fishery Research Unit Humboldt State University, Arcata, CA 95521 February 1989.
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Post by Admin on Jun 17, 2015 18:20:41 GMT
PISMO CLAM Tivela stultorum (Mawe 1823) - Common Marine Bivalves of California By JOHN E. FITCH MARINE FISHERIES BRANCH. Click on the image of Pismo clams to enlarge it. Click on the Common Marine Bivalves of California posted in RED to view the entire text of the body of work produced by John E. Fitch..
Description: Valves large, thick and massive, covered with a heavy, varnish-like coat of periostracum. Angle formed at the umbo by the anterior and posterior margins is symmetrical. Hinge ligament external, quite prominent. Color variable, particularly in young individuals, ranging from pale buckskin to dark chocolate. Occasional individuals marked with chocolate brown lines radiating from the umbo. Attains a length of about seven and one-quarter inches. Symmetrical triangular shape, thick hard shell, and typical habitat distinguish this species from all others in the same family.
Range: Halfmoon Bay, California, to Magdalena Bay, Baja California.
Habits: Usually lives in the intertidal zone on flat sandy beaches of the open coast exposed to the full force of the surf. Has been taken in 80 feet of water, and off some of the Southern California beaches large clams are seldom found in less than 20 feet of water. Sometimes found in entrance channels to bays, sloughs or estuaries. This species is a relatively slow digger and seldom burrows more than six inches into the sand. Best localities in the intertidal zone are Pismo Beach, Morro Bay, and the area in Monterey Bay between Elkhorn Slough and Santa Cruz.
Use: The flesh of this clam is highly esteemed for food and it is the subject of an extremely heavy fishery in California. Used to a minor extent for fish bait. Shells are used for souvenir ashtrays, etc.
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Post by Admin on Jun 18, 2015 13:49:38 GMT
Updated information for the range of Pismo clams from the 2006 survey. Fossil remains of Pismo clams have been found in Pleistocene deposits at least 25,000 years old in Santa Barbara and San Diego Counties. Thus the species has been present along our coast since the time of the last ice age. The Pismo clam belongs to the Veneridae family, which is characteristic of tropical seas. Though the Pismo clam is not tropical in distribution, it prefers warmer waters, being historically recorded from Half Moon Bay, California, to Socorro Island, Baja California Sur, Mexico. However, it has not been found at Half Moon Bay for decades, and its present range extends northward only to Monterey Bay. Pismo clams have been historically found at three of the Channel Islands: Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, and San Miguel islands. Healthy populations are known to currently exist at Santa Cruz and Santa Rosa islands, while San Miguel Island has not been surveyed for Pismo clams.
Unsuccessful attempts have been made to introduce Pismo clams as far north as Washington State. Pismo clams do not fare well in extremely cold water, and are very susceptible to freezing temperatures during low tide due to their shallow orientation in the sand. Surveys have shown that Pismo clams that have been translocated north of their historic range usually die within the first year of being planted.
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Post by Gardenmartha on Jan 26, 2017 4:57:20 GMT
Hello! I am the mystery woman in the photo below. A good friend took me clamming for Pismos on January 20, 2008 at a secret spot near San Diego and we had limits for two in about an hour. I posted the photo on Bloodydecks.com, now known as BD Outdoors. Thanks for sharing!
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Post by Admin on Jan 26, 2017 12:02:24 GMT
GardenMartha thanks for the response and sharing your experience digging Pismo clams. It is great to know the rest of the story. Bill
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