AnimalsCoral Reef
Giant clam Fun facts for kids
Tridacna gigas
The giant clam lives on sunny coral reefs near Australia and Asia and eats sugar from tiny plants inside it.
- Where it lives
- on sunny coral reefs near Australia and Asia
- What it eats
- sugar from tiny plants inside it
- How big it is
- as wide as a child is tall
Fun facts about the giant clam
The ones Sammy likes best. She tells them in the game, too.
Tiny living specks called algae live in its fleshy lips and make food for it from sunlight.
A big giant clam can weigh more than two grown-up people put together.
Its soft body has hundreds of tiny spots that work like simple eyes and notice shadows.
When a shadow passes over it, a giant clam may squirt water and slowly close its shells.
Old stories say giant clams trap divers' feet, but that's not true, they close slowly and are harmless.
Giant clams can live for more than 100 years.
Once it settles on the reef, a giant clam stays in that same spot for its whole life.
No two giant clams have exactly the same pattern of colours on their soft body.
Riddle
Can a friend guess it?
Read the clues to someone, one at a time, without saying the animal. How many clues do they need? Fewer is better, just like in the game.
I live in warm, shallow, sunny sea water near Australia and Asia.
Once I settle down on the reef, I stay in that same spot for my whole life.
Tiny living specks in my soft lips make food for me from sunlight.
My soft body has hundreds of tiny spots that work like eyes and notice shadows.
I'm heavier than two grown-ups, and my two huge wavy shells open wide on the reef.
Sammy might be thinking of a giant clam.
In Thought Zoo, Sammy picks an animal and you ask her yes-or-no questions to find it. You'll find the giant clam in the Coral Reef adventure.
Play the Coral ReefComing to iPad, iPhone and Android on 12 January 2027
