I am including this entry for the Yellow-spot Scallop, Spathochlamys benedicti (Verrill & Bush [in Verrill], 1897), hoping to find from the readers of this column whether anyone has found it on local beaches. The species, which has a broad distribution in the western tropical Atlantic Ocean, is known from samples collected offshore of Sanibel, in depths around 90 feet. This species, at about 0.5 inches in size, is one of the smallest scallops from our part of the Gulf of Mexico. The shell has about 40 radial ribs, which are sometimes festooned with a row of spine-like scales. The color is very variable, ranging from off-white, yellow, orange, brownish, sometimes mottled with angular spots.
The Yellow-spot Scallop, Spathochlamys benedicti, from offshore Sanibel Island. Photo by José H. Leal.