The Clam Declared Extinct That Came Back

Tridacna gigas, the world's largest bivalve, was declared locally extinct in the Philippines in the 1980s. In 2017 the Malampaya Foundation and Western Philippines University spawned the native species from surviving clams at Dos Palmas in Honda Bay (about 9.5 million eggs fertilised in the first run) and by the end of 2020 had spawned 132 million. The Foundation's String of Pearls project deploys juveniles into effectively managed marine protected areas in northern Palawan, Oriental Mindoro and Batangas: 500 native juveniles went to two Calamianes MPAs covering 623 and 3,468 hectares in November 2020, followed by adult and juvenile transfers to El Nido in 2023. The public can sponsor the nursery through Adopt-A-Shell, which starts at 500 pesos (about US$10). The Foundation is still active, with field and community news posted through August 2026.