The Sunday porch: Queensland

Queensland porch with shell, ca. 1895, via State Library of Queensland“Decorated corner of a veranda,” Queensland, Australia, ca. 1895, photographer unknown, via State Library of Queensland.

The shell of the giant clam (Tridacna gigas) pictured above was probably taken from the waters around the Great Barrier Reef.  Today, the mollusk is a “vulnerable” species due to overharvesting.