Soft-shell clams or Sand gaper, scientific name Mya arenaria, popularly called "steamers", "softshells", "piss clams", "Ipswich clams", or "Essex clams", are a species of edible saltwater clam, a marine bivalve mollusk in the family Myidae.
Soft-shell clam
A sea otter at Moss Landing, California, eating what appear to be Mya arenaria
Image: Mya arenaria (strandgaperbroed op balgzand 8326 sd)
Image: Ecomare strandgaper (4792 mya strandgaper mok ogb)
Ipswich is a coastal town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 13,785 at the 2020 census. Home to Willowdale State Forest and Sandy Point State Reservation, Ipswich includes the southern part of Plum Island. A residential community with a vibrant tourism industry, the town is famous for its clams, celebrated annually at the Ipswich Chowderfest, and for Crane Beach, a barrier beach near the Crane estate. Ipswich was incorporated as a town in 1634.
John Whipple House, constructed c. 1677
Ipswich Public Library
Ipswich Lace Historical Marker
Town hall