This all started with an email from a co-worker. I saw the image attached and whispered [that looks like a weiner] to another co-worker. I have been looking for other images of geoducks since then for kicks. They look so gross and nasty. See for yourself.

geo·duck also gwe·duc
(click to hear the word) (g-dk)
n.

A very large, edible clam (Panope generosa) of the Pacific coast of northwest North America.

A geoduck is not a duck in any way, shape, or form. It is a species of large saltwater clam (Panope generosa) which is native to the northern Pacific coasts of Canada and the United States of America, that is, along the coasts of Washington state and the providence of British Columbia. They live buried deep in the sand of ocean beaches, and feed on smaller sea creatures. They can live to be over 100 years old. The first time most people see one, they are immediately struck by the creature's strong resemblence to an oversized(?) example of a certain portion of the male anatomy. (If you've ever seen David Lynch's movie version of the science fiction novel Dune, think 'sandworm with an ill-fitting shell'.) Despite this seeming drawback, geoducks are sometimes dug up, cooked and eaten. If they can be caught; they are excellent diggers.

The name seems to have originated from an Native American word meaning 'to dig deep'. It worked its way into English via a pidgin trading language called 'Chinook', which was developed and used between the area's Native Americans and the arriving European settlers. Why these two groups felt the need to discuss clams, I do not know.

Nasty...