Mollusca of Taiwan

There are some amazing molluscs here in taiwan. I am getting more and more interested in them as time passes. Used to breed them as pets as a kid, now there are some really cool ones.

One of the many areas I’m totally uneducated on is aquatic species. I’m very interested in rearing some freshwater bivalves but am looking for info on diet. I have spent a few nights searching streams and ditches to get a grasp on their environment but worry about the food options.

What have you found or are interested in?

Like mussels?

Ya they are one group. I’m reading about freshwater mussels and bivalves now, I had no idea before…

Probably the most interesting molluscs are found in my food plate.

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My wife will know, she grew up playing in the local rivers before they polluted them with pesticides and other crap.

There were loads of critters and shellfish supposedly.

Now foreign crayfish are spreading around Taiwan .

One interesting fact I recall. There used to be GIANT oysters or clams of some sort in the rivers and lakes that would have grown for hundreds of years , they found fossil evidence of them.

How big were they? True fresh water ones?

I’m sure they all ended up on someone’s plate like above and forever no more. But sad how many poachers there still are using poison and batteries. Sad.

But there are still s ton of cool things to be found here. If not for Taiwan’s steep mountain to ocean geography, surely such a polluted and poached island would not be able to maintain the great diversity we still can see here.

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Well , over a hundred giant hinoki trees were discovered a few months ago. Theres still stuff 'out there '.

I never imagined fossil clams.are such a big industry

Chinese sucking all the resources up again.

That last link is one big advertisement about poaching, what the Fuck…I remember 10 years ago in Palau swimming into empty shells, and I’m over 6 feet tall. Sadly there they are having similar issues, mass poaching for Asian tourists, there its more for food. The main clam display there is now essentially a graveyard. A shame on cultures, not a point to be proud of. In Taiwan I have only seen them under maybe 30cm.

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