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Tridacna gigas

Giant-clam

Multimedia & Additional Resources

Type	Description	Download
Image:	Adult clam, Aitutaki (1)	58KB
Image:	Clam, Aitutaki	65KB
Video:	on Rarotonga (© Karl Traylor)	384KB

General Information

COMMON NAMES: Giant-clam; French Bénitier Géant

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE Nicobar Islands - Fiji; n. to Taiwan; s. to New Caledonia

COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Introduced - Recent, Not naturalised; S.Group (Aitutaki only); Marine, near-shore

SIGNIFICANCE LIST: ; RedList, Globally and Nationally endangered

Cook Islands Distribution

View Distribution Map

Southern Group: Present Makatea: -
RR	MG	AT	MK	MT	AK	PL	TK	MN
-	-	+	-	-	-	-	-	-

Northern Group: -
TN	MH	RK	PK	NS	SW
-	-	-	-	-	-

Key to Symbols

blank	no data
-	absent	L	localised
X	extinct 'naturally'	W	widespread
XQi	quarantine intercepted	R	recent
XQe	eradicated	?	query preceding category
P	present	T?	taxonomic query
S	seasonal	nn	present, said to have no name
O	occasional	?1	present, name not investigated
++++	very common	?2	presence not verified, no name recorded
+++	common	N/A	absent, name not expected
++	uncommon
+	rare
Cook Islands islands: RR =Rarotonga, MG = Mangaia, AT =‘Ātiu, MK=Ma‘uke, MT=Miti‘āro, AK=Aitutaki, PL=Palmerston, PN=Penrhyn, MN=Manuae, TK=Takūtea, TN=Tongareva (TS=Tongaleva Spoken, TW=Tongareva Written, they say "el" but write "r"), MH=Manihiki, RK=Rakahanga, PK=Pukapuka, NS=Nassau, SW=Suwarrow. After a Polynesian name: ^=orthography query. Countries and other: FIJ=Fiji, WT=Wallis & Futuna, SAM=Samoa, TON=Tonga, NIU=Niue, CK=Cook Islands, CKM=Cook Islands Māori, FP=French Polynesia, AUS=Australs, SOC=Societies, TAH=Tahiti, TUA=Tuamotus, MQS=Marquesas, MNG=Mangareva, PIT=Pitcain group, EAS=Easter Island, HAW=Hawai‘i, NZ=New Zealand, NZM=New Zealand Māori

Scientific Taxonomy

Tridacna gigas (Linnaeus, 1758)
TAXONOMY: ANIMALIA; MOLLUSCA; PELECYPODA (Bivalvia); LAMELLIBRANCHIA; Heterodonta; TRIDACNIDAE

More Information

SIGNIFICANCE NOTES -
BIODIVERSITY: RedList, Globally and Nationally endangered. Comment: Redlist VU A2cd (Vulnerable, Population reduction of at least 20%, Conservation Dependent).. Comments: Cites listed

GENERAL NOTE: 1991 10,000 gigas from Australia to Aitutaki. By 2000 some had grown well, most had died, and some may have naturalised.

Vouchers & References

Vouchers:
None Recorded.

References:
None recorded.

Data Update History (information):
zTX, zB02, zM02, zupM06a

Web Resources

Citation Information

McCormack, Gerald (2007) Cook Islands Biodiversity Database, Version 2007.2. Cook Islands Natural Heritage Trust, Rarotonga. Online at http://cookislands.bishopmuseum.org.
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