Florida Man Found Huge Clam Estimated to be Over 200 Years Old

PANACEA, Florida. A Florida resident, in fact, held it for two centuries after he found a large clam while walking along Alligator Point in Franklin County.

On February 11, a man named Blaine Parker and his family were walking through the community when they came across an ocean quahog, also called a hard clam.

These species of molluscs range from Newfoundland to North Carolina and range in length from 2.8 to 4.3 inches, according to Gulf Specimen Marine Laboratory.

But the clam, which was named “Aber-clam Lincoln”, measured up to 6 inches and 2.6 pounds.

And understand, an ocean quahog can live to be 200 years old, breeding at 6 and eating at 20. Age is calculated by the number of layers on the shell, where each layer corresponds to a year.

The Parker family was able to count 214 layers on the shell of the “Aber Calm Lincoln”, which means that this clam was born in 1809. And yes, this is the same year former President Abraham Lincoln was born.

While these shellfish are usually harvested to be eaten, the family said they felt it was a special shellfish.

“We were just going to eat it, but thought about it for a while and decided it was probably pretty special. That’s why we didn’t want to kill him,” he told a Tallahassee Democrat.