When I walked on North beach, the far north coast of the Queen Charlotte Islands, early that morning and saw the Haidas digging for clams, I was stunned by the beauty of it. I took pictures of the workers and became very excited about the visual potential of the clam digging for an eventual photo story. After doing some research and finding out about the importance of clams in Haida culture, I found it relevant to do the my final assignment on this topic.
According to Haida legend, the breathtaking North beach is where a raven first brought people into the world by leading them out of a giant clam shell.
The clams are found between the high and low tide lines. Quarter-sized depressions in the sand show where clams are most likely hiding. If the sand moves when tapped, there's a clam below. The trick is to dig fast enough to catch up with the clam, which is burrowing deeper into the sand for safety.
A vital food source, clams are also economically important to the Haida community as the majority of licensed diggers are from there. Fish plants in the village of Masset process all clams, providing local employment, and supplying both food and bait markets. The fishery is notable as the first to be co-managed by the Council of the Haida Nation and the Ministry of Fisheries and Oceans of Canada, working together to conduct stock assessment, fis hery monitoring and biotoxin testing.
Islanders’ concerns stem around impacts of the recreational and commercial fisheries, clam abundance and population health, vehicle traffic on the beach and the use of clams for bait. Many of these issues continue to be addressed through the Haida Fisheries Program stock assessment and monitoring programs.
