---
title: "Ensis directus"
description: "Ensis leei — Inne zwierzęta. The Atlantic jackknife clam, Ensis leei, also known as the bamboo clam, American jackknife clam or razor clam, is a large edible marine bivalve mollusc found on the North American Atlantic coast, from Canada to South Carolina."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/pl/animal/atlantic-jackknife
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Ensis directus

> Ensis leei — Inne zwierzęta. The Atlantic jackknife clam, Ensis leei, also known as the bamboo clam, American jackknife clam or razor clam, is a large edible marine bivalve mollusc found on the North American Atlantic coast, from Canada to South Carolina.

- Scientific name: *Ensis leei*
- Category: `other` (Inne zwierzęta)
- Habitats: `sea` (Morze i wybrzeże)
- iNaturalist observations: 6901
- Wikidata: [Q378093](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q378093)
- iNaturalist taxon: [765132](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/765132)

## Names

- en: Atlantic Jackknife
- de: Amerikanische Scheidenmuschel
- es: Almeja navaja
- fr: Couteau américain
- it: Ensis directus
- nl: Ensis directus
- pt: Ensis directus
- pl: Ensis directus

## Countries with the most observations

US (3922), CA (1550), NL (85), GB (59), DK (55), DE (53), FR (27), ES (19), BE (17), SE (5)

## Summary

The Atlantic jackknife clam, Ensis leei, also known as the bamboo clam, American jackknife clam or razor clam, is a large edible marine bivalve mollusc found on the North American Atlantic coast, from Canada to South Carolina. The species was also introduced to Europe at the end of the 1970's and is already extremely abundant there in suitable habitats. The name "razor clam" is also used to refer to different species such as the Pacific razor clam (Siliqua patula) or Razor shell (Ensis magnus).
Jackknife clams live in sand and mud and are found in intertidal or subtidal zones in bays and estuaries. Its streamlined…

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantic_jackknife_clam

## Photo

![Ensis directus](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/atlantic-jackknife/medium.jpg)

Photo: suzannehale · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/40667787

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/atlantic-jackknife?lang=pl` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).