Great scallop
Pecten maximus
- live animal 1
Great scallop
Pecten maximus
- live animal 2
Great scallop
Pecten maximus
- live animal 3
Great scallop
Pecten maximus
- live open animal 1
Great scallop
Pecten maximus
- live open animal close-up 1
Great scallop
Pecten maximus
- shell top valve 1
Great scallop
Pecten maximus
- bottom valve / underside 1
Great scallop
Pecten maximus
- in aquarium 1
The Great scallop is a commercially important deep water species and considered a delicacy to many. It is a bivalve with a rounded upperside and flat lowerside. Shells can be commonly found on a few beaches around the region, they can also be found as discards in ports and harbours as seen below.
Great scallop
Pecten maximus
- discarded shells 1
Great scallop
Pecten maximus
- discarded shells 2
Great scallop
Pecten maximus
- discarded shells 3
Live scallops can be found at extreme low water on reefs around Looe, but I am omitting the exact location as the animals are best left for children to find and study, than taken for food. Putting it simply it would be too easy for people to over collect and destroy the colony there. Personally I wouldn't eat any scallops found on the shore at Looe because of the lilelyhood of contamination.
Scientific and European Names:
Pecten maximus, Great scallop, Grosse pilgermuschel, Sint-jakobsschelp, Coquille saint-Jacques, Vieira, Cappasanta atlantica.