The majority of the marine benthos is pelagic in their larval stage. The Manila clam Ruditapes philippinarum, is widely distributed on sandy tidal flats across Japan and a commercially important shellfish. The clam has a planktonic larval stage, which lasts 2 to 3 weeks after hatching. In this stage, the most clam larvae are able to disperse over wide areas with the currents and then settle on new habitats on other shores. Many scientists have recently focused to these processes as the “supply-side ecology”, which includes the dispersal and transport of planktonic larvae, their retention at or return to adult habitats, settlement at tidal-flat and recruitment to their populations. Such factors play an important role in the community and population dyanamics of Manila clam in tidal-flat. This article briefly summarizes the studies about these factors of the clam.
