678 MARINE PRODUCTS OF COMMERCE 



Squid is sold fresh in most of the important fish markets of California, Oregon, 

 and Washington, and in New York City. Only one California cannery packed 

 squid in 1921, but in Spain considerable quantities are canned in olive oil. The 

 most important method of preservation is sun-drying, and considerable quantities 

 of this moUusk are preserved in this manner in California for the oriental trade. 



Coleman (1933) states that the methods of drying squid vary according to the 

 quality of the product desired. The best quality of selected squid must be at least 

 medium-large size (10 to 18 inches in length). They are split, and the pen and 

 ink bag is removed; they are then scraped, spread out flat on the ground, and 

 dried, with very little or no salt. They are frequently turned, generally by hand, 

 and when thorpughly dried and hard are packed in barrels or boxes and shipped 

 to market. 



The cockle industry of Europe is one of the important shellfisheries of that 

 continent, and is particularly important on the coasts of the British Isles; yet, in 

 America this shellfish is almost neglected. The common cockle (Cardium corbis) 

 flourishes along the northwestern coast from Coos Bay, Oregon, northward. Fresh 

 cockles are eaten to a limited extent in Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, 

 and Alaska. Some cockles are canned in the vicinity of Tillamook Bay and sold 

 as clams. 



Periwinkles and whelks are commonly eaten in Europe, but the American spe- 

 cies are seldom utilized for any purpose. The most important Atlantic species 

 (Buccinum undatum, Linn) is found from Cape Cod northward. This is common 

 along the Alaskan Coast. The small periwinkle {Littorma litorea) is found in 

 abundance on all our coasts. Both Buccinum undatum, the English whelk, and 

 Littorina litorea, Linn, the English periwinkle, are taken in large quantities on the 

 coasts of the British Isles. 



The piddock is found in the United States along the eastern coast from Cape 

 Hatteras southward, and is commonly eaten in the West Indies. This mollusk 

 (Pholus costata) is larger than the European species {Pholas dacti/Ius) , which 

 is utilized for food by the French, particularly those living along the coast of 

 Normandy. 



The moonshell, or natica, is one of the common shellfish on both the Atlantic 

 and Pacific Coasts, where it occurs from New Jersey to Maine and from California 

 to Alaska. Although this mollusk is excellent as food, little use has been made of it. 



On the Florida and southern California coasts the donax {Donax laevigata, 

 Deshayes) is found in considerable quantities. The shells are less than an inch 

 long and appear short and stumpy, cut nearly off at one end and tapering to a 

 rounded point at the other. This mollusk varies in color from white to pink and 

 purple. These shellfish are used principally in soup, which is prepared by boiling 

 the entire mollusks in a large pot of water. The soup is strained from the shells 

 and is occasionally canned, but usually loses its delicate flavor during the canning 

 process. 



In Florida the donax is commonly called "coquina." It is captured by burying 

 a box with a heavy screen bottom, called a "coquina scoop," in the sand at the 

 edge of the tide line. As the tide breaks on the sand, the coquina are washed in 

 and immediately burrow into the sand. After the box has been buried for an hour 

 or two, it is dug up and dipped into water to wash out the sand. The coquina are 

 trapped by the wire bottom. To hasten commercial operations the beach sand is 



