Craig Welch's "Shell Games: Rogues, Smugglers, and the Hunt for Nature's Bounty"

"Craig Welch's "Shell Games" has the most unlikely of central characters: the massive geoduck clam, a tasty creature that resides in the waters of Puget Sound and resembles the raciest part of the male anatomy. Pronounced "gooey-duck," the valuable shellfish and the humans who cannot resist plundering it make for a compelling tale that is at once ridiculous and tragic. Writing in the vein of a detective novelist, Welch recounts how a group of dedicated state and federal wildlife agents devoted years to cracking down on the lucrative trade in geoducks (scientific name: Panope generosa) in the Pacific Northwest.

One of the...

Hitmen, smugglers, and clams? In his book "Shell Games", Craig Welch tells the story of environmental detectives who are trying to track down smugglers of the geoduck (GOO-EE duck) clam. Host Jeff Young talks with Welch about how the global black market for wildlife has increased the demand for species close to home.

Click here to listen or read the transcript.

When Criminals Clam Up

Black marketeers invade the shellfish racket, and officials try to stop them.

By GEOFFREY NORMAN

"...It would seem to be a familiar tale of tough-guy law enforcement, with a plotline somewhere between "Kojak" and "CSI." Lawmen track down leads, sift through evidence, set up stakeouts, work informers, cut deals with low-lifes and work their way up the food chain to bust the big guys or expose a conspiracy. They do everything that cops do except shoot somebody...