This TED Talk features marine biologist Maylin Neo, recorded live at TED 2017.

Back home, my friends call me nicknames, such as the giant clam girl, clam queen, or the mother of clams.

This is because every time I see them, I talk non-stop about giant clams all day, every day.

Giant clams are this massive and colorful shell marine animals,

the largest of its kind.

Just look at this shell!

The biggest recorded individual was four and a half feet long

and weigh about 550 pounds.

That is almost as heavy as three baby elephants.

South Pacific legends once described giant clams as man-eaters

that would line weight on the seabed to trap unsuspecting divers.

A story goes that a diver had lost his legs while trying to retrieve a pearl from a giant clam.

I thought, really?

So out of curiosity, I did an experiment using myself as big.

I carefully placed my hand into the clam's mouth and waited.

Hmm. I still have my hand.

It seems that these gentle giants would rather retreat and protect their flashy bodies than

feed on me. So much for this killer clam miss.

Unfortunately, the reality is, we are the giant clams' biggest threat.

Considered a delicacy throughout the Western Pacific and Indian oceans,

giant clams have been traditionally fished as seafood.

Fishermen are particularly interested in their adductal muscles, which are organs that

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