New record!

Based on the huge numbers over the dam I decided to troll the big C near Portland yesterday.  Marked some fish but couldn't hook up.  So I decided to drop a lead mooching rig on top of some marks.  Paddled a bit to get back in position, then reeled up to find this "limit" plus one.  I just can't seem to hook a salmon in fresh water anymore.  I found this hookup both sad and funny. 

Lol. That's pretty good. Those are some voracious clams attacking your lure like that. I wouldn't swim there.  You'll get clammed to death.

Ha!  Pretty funny.  What kind of clams are they, are they edible, and is it legal to keep that kind of clams?  If you can't catch salmon, you might as well go after clams.

Ha!  Pretty funny.  What kind of clams are they, are they edible, and is it legal to keep that kind of clams?  If you can't catch salmon, you might as well go after clams.

As far as I know freshwater clams are off limits.plus they are filter feeders so I don't think I would eat them anyways from the Columbia. I found one at the mouth of the deschutes on year that was bigger than the palm of my hand.

Nice catch!

These are introduced, invasive Asian clams (Corbicula fluminea) and not native clams.    If anything, they are a danger to the native floaters (native freshwater mussel, sometimes called a clam).  They are very popular small clam for things like soups in their native region, but tend to be bio-accumulators of toxins here in the Columbia River.    I'm not familiar with any regulations specific to these clams, but in general you are not allowed to move non-native species (particularly if they are still alive).

http://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/factsheet.aspx?speciesid=92

Here's a recipe for Corbicula soup.

http://invasivore.org/2011/05/recipe-three-cups-corbicula/

I'm not familiar with any regulations specific to these clams

http://www.dfw.state.or.us/fish/docs/2015/2015%20Oregon%20Sport%20Fishing%20Regs_r12-11-14.pdf

Page 9, "It is illegal to harvest or possess any freshwater mussels or clams."

I'm not familiar with any regulations specific to these clams

http://www.dfw.state.or.us/fish/docs/2015/2015%20Oregon%20Sport%20Fishing%20Regs_r12-11-14.pdf

Page 9, "It is illegal to harvest or possess any freshwater mussels or clams."

I'm curious as to whether this is true of Washington also. I can't find it in the regs there.

I'm not familiar with any regulations specific to these clams

http://www.dfw.state.or.us/fish/docs/2015/2015%20Oregon%20Sport%20Fishing%20Regs_r12-11-14.pdf

Page 9, "It is illegal to harvest or possess any freshwater mussels or clams."

Man, you'd think if they were invasive, they would do a public service announcement, test them, and if they were anywhere near edible from a contaminant point of view, open it up.  If they are a known edible species in Asia, I can say with almost complete certainty, they'd get wiped out or at the very least severely knocked down in a hurry.

Man, you'd think if they were invasive, they would do a public service announcement, test them, and if they were anywhere near edible from a contaminant point of view, open it up.  If they are a known edible species in Asia, I can say with almost complete certainty, they'd get wiped out or at the very least severely knocked down in a hurry.

They're very very tiny (~ 1 inch max).  In America we like things big nobody wants to work that hard for tiny bits of clam meat.  On the other hand, in China, it seems the harder it is to obtain, cook, or eat something, the more of a delicacy it is considered. 

Also, they don't want people transporting these things around live for food and accidentally introducing them to new bodies of water in the process.  Although in this case they are pretty ubiquitous.

Man, you'd think if they were invasive, they would do a public service announcement, test them, and if they were anywhere near edible from a contaminant point of view, open it up.  If they are a known edible species in Asia, I can say with almost complete certainty, they'd get wiped out or at the very least severely knocked down in a hurry.

They're very very tiny (~ 1 inch max).  In America we like things big nobody wants to work that hard for tiny bits of clam meat.  On the other hand, in China, it seems the harder it is to obtain, cook, or eat something, the more of a delicacy it is considered. 

Also, they don't want people transporting these things around live for food and accidentally introducing them to new bodies of water in the process.  Although in this case they are pretty ubiquitous.

Makes sense. I don't know what we call them here but I'd kill for a bucket of the clams in Japn we call "asari" I think. Great in miso soup and stock. Wiki says they are Manila clams but I know what they are. The ones I'm thinking of are darker and thumbnail size.

In seems that in Japan, there are various species of Corbicula called shijimi

http://japanesefooddictionary.blogspot.com/2012/02/shijimi.html

Shijimi ramen looks pretty tasty to me...

Those are Asian Clams; I have seen them since I was a kid growing up here in Oregon.  They are edible, and popular among southeast Asian style stir fries.  My parents used to harvest them along the Oregon rivers in the late 80's early 90's before it was illegal to take them.  Yup, those are the same clams in the Shijimi Ramen noodles.

-Veasna

The bottom of the Columbia is loaded with these.  They are literally three inches apart all over the bottom.  At least where I did some diving near Vancouver and Sauvie Island.

In seems that in Japan, there are various species of Corbicula called shijimi

http://japanesefooddictionary.blogspot.com/2012/02/shijimi.html

Shijimi ramen looks pretty tasty to me...

Your Japanese is better than mine! That's it!!!