NOAA TR NMFS SSRF-656 A UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE PUBLICATION NOAA Technical Report NMFS SSRF-656 / V \ U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Marine Fisheries Service The Calico Scallop, Argopecten gibbus DONALD M. ALLEN and T. J. COSTELLO lianne Biotogical Lalwuluii LlBRARy SEP13W2 Vitoods Hole, Mass. SEATTLE, WA May 1972 NOAA TECHNICAL REPORTS National Marine Fisheries Service, Special Scientific Report-Fisheries Series The major responsibilities of the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) are to monitor and assess the abundance and geographic distribution of fishery resources, to understand and predict fluctuations in the quantity and distribution of these resources, and to establish levels for optimum use of the resources. NMFS is also charged with the development and implementation of policies for managing national fishing grounds, develop- ment and enforcement of domestic fisheries regulations, surveillance of foreign fishing off United States coastal waters, and the development and enforcement of international fishery agreements and policies. NMFS also as- sists the fishing industry through marketing service and economic analysis programs, and mortgage insurance and vessel construction subsidies. It collects, analyzes, and publishes statistics on various phases of the industry. The Special Scientific Report — Fisheries series was established in 1949. The series carries reports on scien- tific investigations that document long-term continuing programs of NMFS, or intensive scientific reports on studies of restricted scope. The reports may deal with applied fishery problems. The series is also used as a medium for the publication of bibliographies of a specialized scientific nature. NOAA Technical Reports NMFS SSRF are available free in limited numbers to governmental agencies, both Federal and State. They are also available in exchange for other scientific and technical publications in the marine sciences. Individual copies may be obtained (unless otherwise noted) from NOAA Publications Section, Rockville, Md. 20852. Recent SSRF's are: 604. The flora and fauna of a basin in central Florida Bay. By J. Harold Hudson, Donald M. Allen, and T. J. Costello. May 1970, iii + 14 pp., 2 figs., 1 table. 605. Contributions to the life histories of several penaeid shrimps (Penaeidae) along the south Atlantic Coast of the United States. Bv William W. Anderson. May 1970, iii + 24 pp., 15 figs., 12 tables. 606. Annotated references on the Pacific saury, Colol- abis saira. By Steven E. Hughes. June 1970, iii -1- 12 pp. 607. Studies on continuous transmission frequency modulated sonar. Edited by Frank J. Hester. June 1970, iii + 26 pp. 1st paper. Sonar target classification experiments with a continuous- transmission Doppler sonar, by Frank J. Hester, pp. 1-20, 14 figs., 4 tables; 2d paper. Acoustic target strength of several species of fish, by H. W. Volberg, pp. 21-26, 10 figs. 608. Preliminary designs of traveling screens to col- lect juvenile fish. July 1970, v + 15 pp. 1st paper, Traveling screens for collection of juvenile salmon (models I and II), by Daniel W. Bates and John G. Vanderwalker, pp. 1-5, 6 figs., 1 table; 2d paper. Design and operation of a canti- levered traveling fi.sh screen (model V), by Dan- iel W. Bates, Ernest W. Murphey, and Earl F. Prentice, 10 figs., 1 table. 609. Annotated bibliography of zooplankton sampling devices. By Jack W. Jossi. July 1970, iii -f 90 pp. 610. Limnological study of lower Columbia River, 1967-68. By Shirley M. Clark and George R. Snyder. July 1970, iii + 14 pp., 15 figs., 11 tables. 611. Laboratory tests of an electrical barrier for con- trolling predation by northern squawfish. By Galen H. Maxfield, Robert H. Lander, and Charles D. Volz. July 1970, iii + 8 pp., 4 figs., 5 tables. 612. The Trade Wind Zone Oceanography Pilot Study. Part VIII: Sea-level meteorological properties and heat exchange processes, July 1963 to June 1965. By Gunter R. Seckel. June 1970, iv -f 129 pp., 6 figs., 8 tables. 613. Sea-bottom photographs and macrobenthos col- lections from the Continental Shelf off Massa- chusetts. By Roland L. Wigley and Roger B. Theroux. August 1970, iii + 12 pp., 8 figs., 2 tables. 614. A sled-mounted suction sampler for benthic or- ganisms. By Donald M. Allen and J. Harold Hudson. August 1970, iii + 5 pp., 5 figs., 1 table. 615. Distribution of fishing eff'ort and catches of skip- jack tuna, Katsuwoniis pelamis, in Hawaiian waters, bv quarters of the vear, 1948-65. By Richard N. Uchida. June 1970, iv + 37 pp., 6 figs., 22 tables. 616. Eff'ect of quality of the spawning bed on growth and development of pink salmon embryos and alevins. By Ralph A. Wells and William J. Mc- Neil. August 1970, iii -f 6 pp., 4 tables. 617. Fur seal investigations, 1968. By NMFS, Ma- rine Mammal Biological Laboratory. December 1970, iii + 69 pp., 68 tables. 618. Spawning areas and abundance of steelhead trout and coho, sockeye, and chum salmon in the Columbia River Basin - past and present. By Leonard A. Fulton. December 1970, iii + 37 pp., 6 figs., 11 maps, 9 tables. 619. Macrozooplankton and small nekton in the coastal waters off Vancouver Island (Canada) and Washington, spring and fall of 1963. By Donald S. Day, January 1971, iii + 94 pp., 19 figs., 13 tables. 620. The Trade Wind Zone Oceanography Pilot Study. Part IX : The sea-level wind field and wind stress values, July 1963 to June 1965. Bv Gunter R. Seckel. June 1970, iii + 66 pp., 5 figs. Continued on inside back cover. ^O ATMOSp^^ ''Went of U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE Peter G. Peterson, Secretary NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION Robert M. White, Administrator NATIONAL MARINE FISHERIES SERVICE Philip M. Roedel, Director NOAA Technical Report NMFS SSRF-656 The Calico Scallop, Argopecten gibbus DONALD M. ALLEN and T. J. COSTELLO Marine Biologic2l Lbor :tory LIBRARY SEP 1 3 1972 Woods Hole, Mass. SEAHLE, WA May 1972 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Washington, D.C., 20402 - Price 35 cents The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) does not approve, rec- ommend or endorse any proprietary product or proprietary material mentioned in this publication. No reference shall be made to NMFS, or to this publication furnished by NMFS, in any advertising or sales pro- motion which would indicate or imply that NMFS approves, recommends or endorses any proprietary product or proprietary material mentioned herein, or which has as its purpose an intent to cause directly or indirectly the advertised product to be used or purchased because of this NMFS publication. CONTENTS Page Introduction 1 Biology Classification 1 Description 2 Distribution 2 Environment 4 Relative abundance 5 Reproduction 5 Age and growth 8 Mortality 9 Associated organisms 10 Behavior 10 Fishery General 12 North Carolina 15 Florida east coast 15 Northeastern Gulf of Mexico 16 Summary 16 Literature cited 17 Figures No. Page 1. Calico scallop, showing left valve (top) and right valve (bottom) 2 2. General distribution of the calico scallop is shown by the stippled area 3 3. Relative abundance of the calico scallop, Cape Kennedy grounds, 1960-1966. One fathom equals 1.8 m 6 4. Spawn, ejected by the calico scallop on the left, appears as a milky cloud 7 5. A spat trap is a nylon mesh bag (top) containing unlaid polyethylene line (bottom right). Young scallops enter the bag as larvae, grow, and are permanently trapped when their size (center) exceeds that of the mesh opening. Spat traps are used to monitor spawning success by season and area 8 6. Animals associated with calico scallops on the Cape Kennedy grounds, Florida, include shrimp, crabs, gastropod and bivalve mollusks, starfish, brittle stars, sea urchins, sand dollars, and fish H 7. Juvenile calico scallops swimming in aquarium 12 8. Locations of calico scallop fishing grounds (wavy lines) and cities referred to in text (numerals) 13 9. A factory-type scalloper, with sorting and shucking machinery mounted on deck 14 Table No. 1. Annual production and value of calico scallops, southeastern United States 1959-1970 . 13 iii The Calico Scallop, Argopecfen gibbus By DONALD M. ALLEN and T. J. COSTELLO, Fishery Biologists National Marine Fisheries Service Southeast Fisheries Center Miami Laboratory Miami, Florida 33149 ABSTRACT The calico scallop, Argopecten gibbus, supports a developing fishery off the southeastern coast of the United States and in the Gulf of Mexico. Information is given on classification, description, distribution, environment, relative abundance, reproduction, age and growth, mortality, associated organisms, behavior, and the fishery. INTRODUCTION The calico scallop, Argopecten gibbus, a com- mercially valuable shellfish, is fished in the At- lantic Ocean off North Carolina and Florida and in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico. Develop- ment of the fishery has been slow^ and erratic, due to problems related to stock availability and processing. The apparent large concentrations of scallops off the Florida east coast and the in- troduction of scallop shucking and eviscerating machines suggest, however, that the harvest of calico scallops will increase in the next few years. Biologists at the National Marine Fisheries Service, Southeast Fisheries Center, Miami Lab- oratory, Miami, Fla., are studying the biology of the calico scallop to determine which ecological factors control distribution and abundance and to predict seasonal and annual availability of the harvestable stock. As a first step, this re- port summarizes available information concern- ing the biology and the fishery of the calico scallop. BIOLOGY Classification ' Contribution No. 207, National Marine Fisheries Service, Southeast Fisheries Center, Miami Laboratory, Miami, Fla. The calico scallop, Argopecten gibbtis (Linne) , is a benthic marine pelecypod mollusk of the family Pectinidae. Formerly known as Pecten gibbiis or Aqidpecten gibbtcs, the species was placed in the genus Argopecten by Waller (1969). In the same genus he also placed two closely related species that occur within the range of the calico scallop. These are the nucleus scallop, Argopecten nucleiis (Born) , and the bay scallop, Argopecten irradians (Lamarck) , which, unlike the calico scallop, are generally restricted to very shallow water in the region of overlap- ping distribution. Methods of separating these scallops by shell characteristics were given by Waller. A calico scallop is shown in Fig- ure 1. The shell morphology of the calico scallop var- ies with locality (Bullis and Ingle, 1959) and perhaps environment (Waller, 1969). The sub- specific status of a less convex form, A. gibbtis portusregii, from buoys off South Carolina was questioned by Waller. Figure 1. — Calico scallop, showing left valve (top) and right valve (bottom). Description A thorough description of the calico scallop shell was given by Waller (1969). He noted that this species generally reaches 40 to 60 mm in shell height (a straight line measurement of the greatest distance between the umbo and the ventral margin). Maximum size reported is about 80 mm in shell diameter (a straight line measurement of the greatest distance between the anterior margin and the posterior margin) (Roe, Cummins, and Bullis, 1971). Shell di- ameter is about the same as shell height in in- dividual small scallops. As height increases, however, diameter increases more rapidly." The height-diameter relationship for calico scallops ranging from 43 to 61 mm in height was shown by Wells, Wells, and Gray (1964). Both valves are well inflated and according to Waller (1969) "generally equiconvex to slightly left-convex." The disk outline is "roughly equi- lateral to slightly produced posteriorly." There are 17 to 23 ribs on the right valve. Waller noted that the color of the left (upper) valve is var- iable, usually with red or maroon mottling or banding on a white or yellow background. The right (lower) valve is more lightly pigmented with the same colors as the left valve. Distribution The calico scallop apparently is restricted to the western North Atlantic Ocean. Distribution of this species is shown in Figure 2. Its known range extends from the northern side of the Greater Antilles and throughout the Gulf of Mexico to Bermuda and slightly north of Cape Hatteras (Waller, 1969; Kirby-Smith^ Mer- rill'). According to Waller, however, the "pre- cise southern limit" of the calico scallop is ob- scured by confusion with other species. Calico scallop shells, but no living animals, were found off Delaware Bay (Merrill, see footnote 4). Al- though this species might be expected from the Bahama Islands, its occurrence there has not been verified. This scallop, generally found on continental or insular shelves, was reported from depths less than 2 m (Kirby-Smith, see footnote 3) to 370 m (Waller, 1969). The depths of occurrence vary with locality. Near the southern end of its range, on the northern side of the Greater Antilles, this species was caught in depths of 22 to 26 m - Unpublished data on file at the National Marine Fisheries Service, Southeast Fisheries Center, Miami Laboratory, Miami, Fla. 33149. ^ William W. Kirby-Smith, Duke University Marine Laboratory, Beaufort, N.C. Personal communication, 1971. * Arthur S. Merrill, Laboratory Director, National Marine Fisheries Service, Northeast Fisheries Center, Oxford Laboratory, Oxford, Md. Personal communica- tion, 1971. N, 40 30- 20- 10- ELAWARE BAY ,;CAPE HATTERAS >^pkPB LOOKOUT BERMUDA NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN ■^^'•^^ Dominican I™ REPUBLIC RICO CARIBBEAN SEA \» If T 100 15 — I r; 'T — r; "t 90 80 Figure 2. — General distribution of the calico scallop is shown by the stippled area. 60W (Waller)" and 277 m (Waller, 1969). In the southeastern Gulf of Mexico, off the Yucatan Peninsula, it was reported from 37 m (Springer and Bullis, 1956) to 78 m (Rice and Kornicker, 1965) . In the northern Gulf, this species is com- mon in depths of 32 to 65 m (Parker, 1960); and in the northeastern Gulf, it was reported from 11 to 93 m (Carpenter, 1967) . In the east- ern Gulf, calico scallops were found in depths from 6 m (Bullis and Thompson, 1965) to 46 m (Bullis and Ingle, 1959). Off the Florida east coast, the calico scallop was reported from 9 to 74 m by Drummond (1969) , although maximum ^ Thomas R. Waller, Associate Curator, Division of Invertebrate Paleontology, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. Personal communication, 1970. depth of occurrence in this area may be greater (Cummins) ." Off North Carolina, south of Cape Hatteras, calico scallops were found from about 13 m (Bullis and Thompson, 1965) to at least 94 m (Cummins, Rivers, and Struhsaker, 1962). At the northern end of its range, north of Cape Hatteras, reported depths of occurrence range from 33 to 44 m (Merrill, see footnote 4). At Bermuda, the calico scallop occurs in less than 2 m of water (Kirby-Smith, see footnote 3) . The calico scallop inhabits open marine water and does not usually occur in estuarine areas as do the nucleus scallop and the Atlantic bay ° Robert Cummins, Jr., Chief, National Marine Fish- eries Service, Southeast Fisheries Center, Brunswick Laboratory, Brunswick, Ga. Personal communication, 1971. scallop (Waller, 1969). At Bermuda, however, calico scallops were found in an almost complete- ly enclosed sound (Neumann, 1965; Kirby-Smith, see footnote 3). Environment Factors that probably influence distribution and/or growth of the calico scallop include cur- rents, temperatui-es, salinities, substrates, and food supply. Currents may be of primary importance in controlling distribution of scallop larvae and, ul- timately, the positioning of the scallop beds. Kirby-Smith (1970) suggested that North Car- olina populations of scallops may be at least par- tially maintained by larvae transported from Florida scallop grounds via the Gulf Stream. The greatest concentrations of calico scallops are found near coastal prominences such as Cape San Bias and Cape Kennedy, Fla.; and Cape Lookout, N.C. Bullis and Cummins (1961) sug- gested that the Cape Kennedy projection causes "interruption and eddying" that produces "re- petitive settling of scallop larvae . . . creating a permanent resource." The scallop beds are generally distributed along the flow lines of cur- rents (National Marine Fisheries Service)' and are thus oriented parallel to the coastline. On the Cape Kennedy grounds, scallops are irreg- ularly distributed but "occur in long narrow bands" (Bullis and Cummins, 1961). Some bands or beds are more than 800 m long and several hundred meters wide (Roe, Cummins and Bullis, 1971). An elliptical-shaped bed 16 km long near Cape Lookout was reported by Cummins, Rivers, and Struhsaker (1962). A bed 16 km long and 8 to 16 km wide near Cape San Bias was reported by Bullis and Ingle (1959). The importance of temperature in controlling reproduction and survival, and thus geographic distribution, of marine bivalves, including the calico scallop, was emphasized by Pulley (1952). Waller (1969) suggested that calico scallop dis- tribution is limited primarily by temperature. According to Parker (1956), the calico scallop is one of a faunal assemblage in the northern Gulf of Mexico that inhabits waters deep enough to avoid winter cooling. Bottom temperatures associated with calico scallops range from 9.9°C (Merrill see footnote 4) to 33.0°C (Waller, 1969). Vernberg and Vernberg (1970) ob- served, however, that calico scallops collected near the northern end of their range, off North Carolina, did not survive 48-hr exposure to lab- oratory water temperatures of 10°C, and have "tropical affinities." Near Cape Lookout, a cal- ico scallop bed was "usually dominated by Car- olinian coastal waters" (Wells, Wells, and Gray, 1964), although bottom temperatures in this area show considerable fluctuation in conjunction with winter and spring meanders of the Gulf Stream (Grassle, 1967). North of Cape Hat- teras, the existence of calico scallops may coin- cide with a mass of relatively warm water (Mer- rill, see footnote 4). Salinities from areas where calico scallops occur are fairly stable and range from about 31 to 37;:*', (Anderson, Moore, and Gordy, 1961; Hulings, 1961; Grassle, 1967; Pequegnat and Pequegnat, 1968). The substrates required or preferred by the calico scallop may vary with scallop size. Young scallops up to about 25 mm in height are found byssally attached to whole or broken mollusk shells. Although commonly attached to dead scallop shells (Commei'cial Fisheries Review, 1962) , they are also found on dead shells of other mollusks (Allen)' and on live scallop shells (Wells, Wells, and Gray, 1964). Shells may be necessary for successful settlement of small scal- lops (Kirby-Smith, 1970) , but spat may com- pete with adults for optimum substrate (Roe, Cummins, and Bullis, 1971). Larger scallops, usually unattached, are re- ported from bottoms composed of hard sand (Rivers, 1962a), sand and shell (Sastry, 1962; Cummins, Rivers and Struhsaker, 1962), quartz sand (Hulings, 1961), smooth sand-shell-gravel (Struhsaker, 1969a), fairly clean, medium- ' National Marine Fisheries Service (in cooperation with state, industry, and university groups in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina). 1971. Joint plan for the calico scallop fishery. Unpublished report, 115 p., filed at the National Marine Fisheries Service, Southeast Fisheries Center, Miami Laboratory, Miami, Fla. 33149. ' Allen, D. M. 1971. Ecology of the calico scallop, Argopecten gibbus, as determined by spat monitoring. Unpublished manuscript filed at the National Marine Fisheries Service, Southeast Fisheries Center, Miami Laboratory, Miami, Fla. 33149. grained quartz sand (Hulings and Hemlay, 1963), and sand and dead shell (Drummond, 1969). Grassle (1967) found calico scallops as- sociated with a mud sediment that contained a high percentage of quartz and shell. Essentially nothing is known concerning the food requirements of the calico scallop. This subject was discussed by Kirby-Smith (1970), who suggested that zooplankton may be an im- portant source of nutrition. Where scallop abundance is greatest, plankton concentration may be high, since upwelling in the general areas of Cape San Bias, Cape Kennedy, and Cape Look- out is reported respectively by Gaul, Boykin, and Letzring (1966), Taylor and Stewart (1959), and Wells and Gray (1960). On the Cape Kennedy grounds, the locations of individual scallop beds vary from year to year and probably are determined by environmental conditions which control setting and survival of larval scallops (National Marine Fisheries Ser- vice, see footnote 7). Personnel of the Miami Laboratory are attempting to relate scallop abundance and growth to substrate types, and to water temperatures and currents now being monitored on the Cape Kennedy grounds. Relative Abundance The relative abundance of calico scallops var- ies between areas. The greatest known abun- dance is located off the Florida east coast near Cape Kennedy, with lesser concentrations near Cape Lookout, N.C., and in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico near Cape San Bias, Fla. Con- centrations were also reported from the eastern Gulf of Mexico between Sanibel Island and Dry Tortugas (Bullis and Ingle, 1959; Carpenter, 1967). Generally fewer scallops are found else- where within the calico scallop range. Abundance also varies within areas. Young calico scallops in the northeastern Gulf of Mex- ico were more abundant on fouling arrays an- chored 18 km offshore in 31 m than on those an- chored 3 km offshore in 19 m and 40 km offshore in 46 m (Pequegnat and Pequegnat, 1968) . Vari- ations in average abundance of commercial size scallops off the Florida east coast for 1960 to 1966 were given by Drummond (1969) as follows: Scallops were most abundant on the southern portion of the grounds in 28 to 65 m (Fig. 3). At these depths, the average rate of catch with a 2.4-m (8-ft) scallop dredge ranged from 3.9 to 12.8 bu per hour. For these catches, 1 bu equaled 36 kg (80 lb.) of scallops in the shell. The rate of catch was highly variable; within one area, catches ranged from 0 to 54 bu per hour. Within a scallop bed, also located off the Florida east coast, average scallop densities were about 43 individuals per square meter (4 per square foot) (Cummins, 1971), but densities may exceed 108 per square meter (10 per square foot) (Roe, Cummins, and Bullis, 1971). Abundance varies with scallop size, although this is poorly documented. Dense concentrations of scallop spat are caught in spat traps, e.g., 107 individuals per liter (3,000 per cubic foot) per 2-month period (Allen, see footnote 8). While density of spat set naturally on the bottom is probably much less, catches of small scallops with dredges at times exceed catches of large indi- viduals (Commercial Fisheries Review, 1968). Abundance varies both seasonally and annu- ally. Monthly changes in scallop abundance by area off the Florida east coast were shown by Drummond (1969). On these grounds, abun- dance (as measured by catch rate) was highest from September to December in 1967 and 1968 (Roe, Cummins, and Bullis, 1971). Abrupt yearly differences in scallop abundance have been reported for the grounds off North Carolina (Cummins, 1971; Lyles, 1969) and in the north- eastern Gulf of Mexico (Bullis and Ingle, 1959; Hulings, 1961). Reproduction The calico scallop is hermaphroditic. When this species spawned in the laboratory, the sperm and eggs (in that order) were ejected sepa- rately into the water where fertilization took place (Costello et al.).° We observed, based on gonadal color (see be- low) , that some calico scallops as small as 19 mm in height are ripe, which indicates either ripeness at a very early age or that these small scallops are older than suspected (see footnote 2). Roe, Cummins, and Bullis (1971) stated that spawn- ing of the calico scallop "is related to age rather " Costello, T. J., J. H. Hudson, J. L. Dupuy, and S. Rivkin. 1971. Larval development of the calico scallop, Argopecten gibbus. Unpublished manuscript filed at the National Marine Fisheries Service, Southeast Fisheries Center, Miami Laboratory, Miami, Fla. 33149. Figure 3. — Relative abundance of the calico scallop, Cape Kennedy grounds, 1960-1966. One fathom equals 1.8 m. (Modified from Drummond, 1969.) than size," and suggested that spawning can be- gin at a young age. Spawning in the calico scallop, similar to that in certain other bivalves, is perhaps controlled primarily by water temperatures and may be initiated by rising temperatures (Roe, Cum- mins, and Bullis, 1971) . The gonads of scallops caught on the Cape Kennedy grounds in October 1969 and maintained in the laboratory at about 25 °C changed color from light pink to orange- red within 2 weeks. These scallops were then induced to spawn (Fig. 4) by rapidly raising the ambient water temperature to 30°C (Miller and Drummond).'" Conversely, low tempera- tures may terminate spawning (Roe, Cummins, and Bullis, 1971). Several methods have been used to determine the seasonal pattern of spawning of the calico '" Miller, G. C, and B. R. Drummond. 1969. Report on gonadal color change and spawning of calico scallops at TABL, October 23-November 13, 1969. Unpublished report, 5 p., filed at the National Marine Fisheries Ser- vice, Southeast Fisheries Center, Miami Laboratory, Miami, Fla. 33149. Figure 4. — Spawn, ejected by the calico scallop on the left, appears as a milky cloud. (Photo by George C. Miller, National Marine Fisheries Service.) scallop. The color of calico scallop ovaries var- ies with the degree of ripeness and is useful to determine maturation and spawning time. Resting ovaries are whitish-yellow, maturing ovaries are yellow-orange, and ripe ovaries are bright reddish-orange, according to Roe, Cum- mins, and Bullis (1971). The seasonal distri- bution of scallops of known age may also provide some insight concerning spawning time. Preli- minary growth data for young scallops (see sec- tion on Age and Gro\vth) suggest that scallops 2 months old are about 17 mm in shell height. Consequently, occurrence of scallops of this size or smaller may indicate recent spawning. In ad- dition, spawning time may be determined by ex- posure of spat collecting traps for known time periods throughout the year (Fig. 5). Techniques dependent upon the minimum sizes of scallops and on the catches of spat traps may not be valid for determining spawning time for a particular area if scallop larvae ai'e transported into the area from great distances as suggested by Kirby-Smith (1970). Off the Florida east coast, maturation, based on ovarian color, begins in late summer and cul- minates in the spring, with spawning extending from late February to June (Roe, Cummins, and Bullis, 1971). These authors concluded, how- ever, that protracted spawning occurs in some areas because small scallops were found through- out most of the year. Our observations on ovar- ian color, minimum sizes, and spat trap collec- tions also indicate that some spawning occurs year around (see footnote 2). Off North Carolina, observations on scallop gonads indicated that spawning took place from May to June (Kirby-Smith, 1970). Small scal- lops 10 mm or less in height, however, were Figure 5. — A spat trap is a nylon mesh bag (top) containing unlaid polyethylene line (bottom right). Young scallops enter the bag as larvae, grow, and are permanently trapped when their size (center) exceeds that of the mesh opening. Spat traps are used to monitor spawning success by season and area. observed in April (Wells, Wells, and Gray, 1964); in May (Commercial Fisheries Review, 1962); and in May, June, and October (Kirby- Smith, 1970). According to Kirby-Smith (1970), the fall occurrence of small scallops in the absence of local spawning may indicate larv- al transport into North Carolina waters. In the northeastern Gulf of Mexico, gonads of calico scallops were highly developed in the spring, and spawning was presumably finished by late summer, according to Bullis and Ingle (1959). Small calico scallops," however, were found attached to fouling arrays from September to July (Pequegnat and Pequegnat, 1968). '"■ Specimens reported as Aquipecten gibbiis nucleus by Pequegnat and Pequegnat (1968) were later identi- fied as Argopecten gibbiis (Waller, see footnote 5). In the eastern Gulf of Mexico, calico scallops about 12 mm in shell height were abundant in late July (Joyce)," indicating that spawning occurred at least in the late spring or early summer. Age and Growth Rate of growth of the calico scallop probably varies with size, season, and environment. Larval development was described from lab- oratory studies (Costello et al, see footnote 9). These authors reported that the length of plank- tonic larval life from fertilization to settlement '° Edwin A. Joyce, Jr., Supervisor, Marine Research Laboratory, Florida Department of Natural Resources, St. Petersburg, Fla. 33731. Personal communication, 1971. is about 14 days and that the spat are about 0.25 mm in shell height when first set. A few observations have been made on the shell growth of young calico scallops following setting. Calico scallops (apparently small spe- cimens) collected from fouling arrays in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico grew at a minimum rate of 3.1 mm (presumably in shell height) per week in April (Pequegnat and Pequegnat, 1968) . Oflf the Florida east coast, young calico scallops found in spat collecting traps after 10 weeks' exposure time had a maximum size of 27 mm in shell height (Allen, see footnote 8). Shell growth of large scallops was estimated by Bullis and Ingle (1959) for calico scallops caught in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico. From re- portedly "inadequate" size frequency data, they tentatively estimated that scallops averaging 54 mm (probably in shell diameter) were 24 months old. Growth of calico scallops from the North Car- olina grounds was estimated using several tech- niques and reported as increases in shell depth by Kirby-Smith (1970). In this case, shell depth refers to shell height (Kirby-Smith, see footnote 3) . For scallops ranging from about 19 to 28 mm in height, maximum growth (converted from the daily rate) was 2.2 mm per month. Calico scal- lops from North Carolina that ranged from 43 to 61 mm in shell height were estimated to be 2 years old (Wells, Wells, and Gray, 1964). Roe, Cummins, and Bullis (1971) estimated growth rates from size frequencies of calico scal- lops collected oif the Florida east coast. They reported that growth (in shell diameter) in- creases rapidly up to about 50 mm. For scallops having mean sizes from 13.9 to 37.8 mm, average growth was 4.0 mm per month. For scallops having mean sizes from 63.5 to 65.5 mm, average growth was 0.3 mm per month. These authors concluded that the calico scallop becomes senile at a size of 75 to 80 mm, that maximum size is 80 mm, and that maximum age averages 18 to 20 months and does not exceed 24 months. In a recent innovation, calico scallops were marked with a quick-setting cement to measure growth increments over known time periods (Hudson)." Preliminary studies oh the Cape Kennedy grounds indicate that marked scallops reach 40 to 45 mm in shell height in 6 to 8 months (Miller and Hudson)." Age-growth estimates shown by Weeks (1970) are in error. Mortality The disappearance of calico scallops from an area is common (Bullis and Ingle, 1959; Hulings, 1961; Commercial Fisheries Review, 1962; Kirby-Smith, 1970; Roe, Cummins, and Bullis, 1971; Porter and Wolfe, in press ; Joyce, see foot- note 12) and has often been attributed to mor- tality or migration, although the ability of calico scallops to migrate has not been shown. Mortal- ity or poor recruitment is indicated when only empty scallop shells are found on formerly pro- ductive scallop grounds. Very heavy natural mortality of calico scal- lops was reported to occur in late winter on the northern two-thirds of the Cape Kennedy grounds (Bullis and Cummins, 1961). The joined valves containing scallop flesh indicated very recent mortality. At the same time, live scallops were fairly abundant on the southern third of the Cape Kennedy grounds. Therefore, these authors concluded that factors affecting mortality may be limited to distinct areas. The causes of mass mortalities of calico scal- lops are not known. Near Cape Hatteras, N.C., where calico scallops occur, drastic fluctuations of water temperature may cause mortalities of benthic invertebrates ( Cerame-Vivas and Gray, 1966) . Some mortalities may be a result of pre- dation. For example, sea stars (Asterias) , which have been observed feeding on scallops, occur in vast numbers on the Cape Kennedy grounds (Roe, Cummins, and Bullis, 1971). Extremely large scallops which are "often in poor condition" and may be "at the end of their life span" are present year around on the Cape Kennedy grounds; the adductor muscle in these scallops is small, discolored, and often too weak to close the shell (Bullis and Cummins, 1961). According to Carpenter (1967) , calico scallops in the north- eastern Gulf of Mexico die in the late summer, "presumably after spawning" and following '* Hudson, J. H. Marking scallops with quick-setting cement. Submitted to Proc. Natl. Shellfish Assoc, for 1971, vol. 62, 7 MS p. " Miller, G. C. and J. H. Hudson. 1971. Growth of calico scallops, Argopecten gibbus. Unpublished manu- script filed at the National Marine Fisheries Service, Southeast Fisheries Center, Miami Laboratory, Miami. Fla. 33149. a decrease in the size of the adductor muscle. There were also indications of a postspawning die-off on the Cape Kennedy grounds (Roe, Cum- mins, and Bullis, 1971). For the Cape Kennedy grounds, average monthly mortality rates, primarily natural, cal- culated for the period December to October were about 20 '^r (Roe, Cummins, and Bullis, 1971). Associated Organisms Plants and animals associated with the calico scallop undoubtedly influence its setting, growth, and survival. Calico scallops have been reported to occur in beds of turtle grass, Thalassia testudinum, in Bermuda (Kirby-Smith, see footnote 3). Marine animals associated with the calico scallop are categorized as follows: epifaunal and endofaunal community (Wells, Wells, and Gray, 1964) ; benthic invertebrates (Grassle, 1967); crustaceans (Hulings, 1961); mollusks (Wells, Wells, and Gray, 1961; Hulings and Hemlay, 1963; Porter and Wolfe, in press) ; echi- noderms (Wells, Wells, and Gray, 1961, 1964; Hulings and Hemlay, 1963; Gray, Downey, and Cerame-Vivas, 1968) ; and fishes (Moe, 1963; Anderson and Gehringer, 1965; Struhsaker, 1969a). A few animals associated with calico scallops on the Cape Kennedy grounds are shown in Figure 6. Marine invertebrates that live on and in the calico scallop "probably reduce growth or repro- ductive potential . . . rather than cause the scal- lop's death," according to Wells, Wells, and Gray (1964). Sindermann (1971) reported, however, that "barnacles, tube worms, and corals can re- duce survival of calico scallops." We have noted that fouling by barnacles may prevent complete closure of the valves and thus predators can be admitted more easily (see footnote 2). Invertebrates reported as parasites (in some cases, commensals) of the calico scallop are a nematode Porrocaecum pectinis (Hutton, 1964); a trematode Procfoeces sp. (Sindermann)"; the " Carl J. Sindermann, Laboratory Director, National Marine Fisheries Service, Northeast Fisheries Center, Sandy Hook Laboratory, Highlands, N.J. 07732. Per- sonal communication, 1970. polychaetes Ceratonereis tridentata and Poly- dora websteri (Wells and Wells, 1962) ; the decapod crustaceans Pontonia margarita and Pinnotheres maculatus (Wells, Wells, and Gray, 1964); and the gastropod mollusks Odostomia seminuda (Wells and Wells, 1961) and Odosto- mia bisutalaris (Cheng, 1967). Predators of the calico scallop are poorly known and observations on food habits of the many associated species would be useful. Re- ported as known predators are the starfishes Astropecten articukttus (Wells, Wells, and Gray, 1961) and Asterias (Roe, Cummins, and Bullis, 1971), and puffers Sphoeroides (Roe, Cummins, and Bullis, 1971). Scallops held in cages on the Cape Kennedy grounds were drilled by unidenti- fied gastropod mollusks (see footnote 2). Reported as possible predators are the gastro- pod mollusks Cantharus multangulus and Murex fulvescens (Wells, Wells, and Gray, 1964); and the thorny stingray Dasyatis centroura (Struh- saker, 1969b). In addition, the Florida horse conch Pleuroploca gigantea and an unidentified octopus may be predators (see footnote 2). Behavior Calico scallop larvae are planktonic and appar- ently occur at all levels in the water column since young scallops were found attached to fouling arrays distributed from surface to bot- tom in 46 m of water in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico (Pequegnat and Pequegnat, 1968). Small calico scallops attach byssally to a va- riety of surfaces, including mollusk shell, tile, and various synthetic materials. Although bys- sal attachment is most pronounced in small scal- lops (those less than about 25 mm in height), scallops up to about 54 mm in height attached to a fiber glass-coated water table (Allen, see footnote 8) . Several observations have been made on the swimming activity of the calico scallop. Accord- ing to Mellon (1969), the calico scallop "has heavy valves and swims only rarely." Zahl (1969) reported, however, that the calico scal- lop is a "champion" swimmer. From a submer- sible on the Cape Kennedy grounds, "sporadic" swimming by some calico scallops was noted al- io Figure 6. — Animals associated with calico scallops on the Cape Kennedy grounds, Florida, include shrimp, crabs, gastro- pod and bivalve mollusks, starfish, brit- tle stars, sea urchins, sand dollars, and fish. (Photo by George C. Miller, Na- tional Marine Fisheries Service.) though most remained inactive." Swimming ability, however, may be enhanced by the rela- tively flat, lightweight valves of small scallops as compared with the convex, heavy valves of large scallops (Waller, 1969) which are often heavily fouled (Cummins, see footnote 6). In the laboratory, small scallops swim more readily than large scallops (Fig. 7). On the Cape Ken- nedy grounds, scallops 10 to 20 mm in shell di- ameter swam "up to the camera" of RUFAS (Remote Underwater Fisheries Assessment Sys- tem)'' and scuba divers observed a scallop about 40 mm in shell height swim to 1 m off the bottom (see footnote 2). From a submersible, lying in a dense concentration of adult scallops on the Cape Kennedy grounds, a few individuals were '" Bureau of Commercial Fisheries (now National Marine Fisheries Service) , Brunswick, Ga., Quarterly Report 12/31/69. " Bureau of Commercial Fisheries (now National Marine Fisheries Service) , Pascagoula, Miss., RV George M. Bowers Cruise 93, 6/1-3 and 6/17-25/70, July 10, 1970. 11 Figure 7. — Juvenile calico scallops swimming in aquarium. obsei-\'ed to swim to about 46 cm off the bottom and then resettle about 30 cm away (Cummins, see footnote 6). Calico scallops are often found in depressions on the sea bottom, as suggested by Rivers (1962a). Video tapes of the bottom off Cape Kennedy produced by RUFAS show that gen- erally, scallops (size not given) were in furrows that run in a northwest-southeast direction or "settled individually in small conical depres- sions" (Commercial Fisheries Review, 1970). FISHERY General The locations of the calico scallop fishing grounds off North Carolina and the Florida east coast and in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico are shown in Figure 8. Production and value of cal- ico scallops for these areas are given in Table 1. Scallops landed in Georgia were caught off the Florida east coast. The commercial production of calico scallops remains relatively low and fluctuates markedly in all three fishing areas. This condition is ap- parently caused by yearly variations in location and productivity of scallop beds compounded by problems of sorting, shucking, and eviscei'ating scallops (National Marine Fisheries Service, see footnote 7). The size and shape of the calico scallop generally prevent economical shucking by hand (Commercial Fisheries Review, 1960); and there is only one locality (near Cape Look- out, N.C.) where hand-shucking was feasible for an extended period (Cummins, 1971). This has led to the development and use of shore-based processing equipment that automatically shucks and eviscerates scallops, and to factory-type scal- lop vessels (Fig. 9) with machinery to sort the 12 20- 10- LEGEND ©Williston ®St. Marys ©Carrabelle ©Beaufort ®St. Augustine @Apalachlcola ©Salter Path ®Daytona Beach i5>Panama City ©Darien ©Port Canaveral @Gult Shores ©Brunswick @Ft. Pierce ©Mobile XI 90° 1^ :x 70° W. Figure 8. — Locations of calico scallop fishing grounds (wavy lines) , and cities referred to in text (numerals). (Modified from Cummins, 1971.) Table 1. — Annual production and value of calico scallops, southeastern United States 1959-1970. [In thousands of pounds of meats and thousands of dollars (ex-vessel price).] Year North Carolina Georgia Florida East Coast Northeastern' Gulf of Mexico Poiinds Dolla' 1959' 6 3 1960 112 45 1961 22 9 1962 __ 1963 — — 1964 - — 1965 871 245 1966 1,857 369 1967 1,389 309 1968' __ _^ 1969 __ _^ 1970 1,574 498 Pounds Dollars 59 2 63 28 1 34 Pounds 21 30 181 196 Dollars Pounds Dollars No data No data No data No data No data No data 16 5 8 13 172 196 16 ^ In the Gulf of Mexico, calico scallop production began in 1958. Until 1962, however, calico scallops were in- cluded with and listed as bay scallops in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Statistical Digests (Carpenter, 1967). = 1959-1967 data from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Statistical Digest Nos. 51-61. ' Dash indicates less than 500 pounds or 500 dollars. * 1968-1970 data rounded off from North Carolina Landings, Georgia Landings, and Florida Landings, published by Bureau of Commercial Fisheries for 1968 and 1969, and National Marine Fisheries Service for 1970 (in cooperation with state agencies). Data shown for 1970 are preliminary and subject to change. 13 Figure 9. — A factory-type scalloper, with sorting and shucking machinery mounted on deck. (Photo by George C. Miller, National Marine Fisheries Service.) catch and shuck and eviscerate live scallops at sea (Anon., 1968; Anon., 1969 ; Cummins and Rivers, 1970; Cummins, 1971). Insofar as the resource is concerned, the fol- lowing is pertinent to the fishery. Catches of calico scallops are considered commercially sig- nificant when 20 bu (in the shell) or more are caught per hour. Furthermore, to be harvest- able, these scallops should be 40 mm (1.6 inches) in shell diameter or larger (Drummond, 1969). The weight of a bushel of scallops in the shell is variable and has been reported as 36 kg (80 lb.) (Drummond, 1969) and "about 70 pounds" [31 kg] (Cummins, 1971). From 1.75 bu, an average of about 3.6 kg (8 lb.) of meats (adduc- tor muscles) can be obtained, but this figure var- ies with scallop condition and size, according to Cummins (1971). Meats as large as 101 count per kilogram (46 count per pound) have been reported (Commercial Fisheries Review, 1968). Minimum sizes of meats acceptable for hand- shucking are 198 count per kilogram (90 count per pound) (Cummins, 1971). Machine-pro- cessed meats as small as 341 count per kilogram ( 155 count per pound) are large enough for com- mercial use (Bullis)." Uses for calico scallops are expanding. In ad- dition to the market for scallop meats, the orange roes are sold in Europe (Cummins, 1971). The scallop viscera, with or without the adductor muscles, are excellent when steamed in the shell " Office memorandum, dated November 28, 1969, to Acting Regional Director, Bureau of Commercial Fish- eries Region 2, St. Petersburg, Fla., from Harvey _R. Bullis, Jr., Director, Bureau of Commercial Fisheries Exploratory Fishing and Gear Research Base, Pasca- goula. Miss. 14 or deep-fried (Miller).'" The viscera, now usu- ally discarded, can be used for animal feeds, and the shells in poultry feed and as a filler in concrete products (Bullis and Love, 1961). In addition, the shells have been used for oyster cultch. The possibility exists that the resource may be adversely affected if large quantities of scal- lop shell, a natural cultch for scallop spat (see section on Environment) , are removed from the scallop grounds by the fishery. lops were machine-processed in shore-based plants located at Williston, Beaufort, and Salter Path, N.C. In 1970, two factory-type scallop vessels worked the North Carolina beds. In North Carolina waters, the supply of calico scallops fluctuates widely between years. No scallops were available in 1962, 1963, and 1964; but overall production increased greatly in 1966 and 1967. Again, no scallops were available in 1968 and 1969 but in 1970 scallops became avail- able and production was resumed. North Carolina Calico scallops have long been known from the vicinity of Cape Hatteras and Cape Lookout in depths over 19 m. In April 1949, abundant quantities of calico scallops were located in 19 m southwest of Cape Lookout by the Institute of Fisheries Research of the University of North Carolina. The small size of the scallops and lack of information on distribution and abundance delayed development of a fishery in this area (Chestnut, 1951). According to Cummins (1971) , the North Car- olina fishery began in 1959, following explora- tions by the Bureau of Commercial Fisheries (now the National Marine Fisheries Service). The results of exploratory scalloping, and a de- scription of a scallop concentration oflp Cape Lookout in 31 to 37 m were given by Cummins, Rivers, and Struhsaker (1962). The North Carolina fishery was described by Cummins ( 1971 ) . The principal scallop grounds are located northeast and southwest of Cape Lookout in 19 to 37 m (Cummins, Rivers, and Struhsaker, 1962; Porter and Wolfe, in press). The scallops were first caught with scallop dredg- es which were soon replaced with scallop trawls that function better than dredges on the hard sand of North Carolina beds (Rivers, 1962a). Although these trawls can catch up to 60 bu of shell stock per 5-min drag, average catch-per- boat-per-day is 400 to 600 bu (Cummins, 1971). The scallops are deck-loaded and landed the same day in the shell. They were all hand-shucked in the fishing communities near Cape Lookout until recently when increasing numbers of scal- " George C. Miller, Zoologist, National Marine Fish- eries Service, Southeast Fisheries Center, Miami Lab- oratory, Miami, Fla. Personal communication, 1970. Florida East Coast Large quantities of calico scallops were discov- ered by the Bureau of Commercial Fisheries off Daytona Beach, Fla., in January 1960 (Taylor, 1967). Subsequent explorations by the Bureau showed that the area of commercial abundance extended from the St. Johns River south to Ft. Pierce in 19 to 74 m of water (Cummins, 1971). Explorations from 1960 to 1968 showed variable areas of greatest concentration, all between 28 and 65 m (Bullis and Cummins, 1961; Drum- mond, 1969; Roe, Cummins, and Bullis, 1971). In this area, catch rates and meat yields are high- est from September to December (Roe, Cum- mins, and Bullis, 1971). The types of vessels used to catch scallops on the Cape Kennedy grounds have included shrimp trawlers. New England scallopers, Chesapeake Bay dredgers, and factory-type scallopers (Cum- mins and Rivers, 1970; Cummins, 1971). The scallops are caught with dredges and trawls. Al- though Rivers (1962b) reported that "dredges generally outfish the trawls" on the softer bot- toms of the Cape Kennedy grounds, it was learned from more recent trials that "the North Carolina type scallop trawl is an excellent device for catching scallops on the Florida grounds, and that catch rates exceed those of smaller dredges" (Commercial Fisheries Review, 1967). The tumbler dredge is superior to the Georges Bank dredge when used on the Cape Kennedy beds (Bullis and Cummins, 1961). An indication of catch rates and production on the Cape Kennedy grounds may be obtained from the following observations. A New Eng- land scalloper with a single 2.4-m (8-ft) tumbler dredge made catches ranging from 735 to 1,500 bu of scallops per 24-hr period (Cummins, 1971). Factory scallopers processed a maximum of 15 about 1,816 kg (4,000 lb.) of scallop meats per 24 hr (Cummins and Rivers, 1970). Shell stock from the Cape Kennedy grounds has been landed at Darien, Brunswick, and St. Marys, Ga.; and at St. Augustine, Port Canav- eral, and Ft. Pierce, Fla. A shore-based plant for machine-processing is located at Port Ca- naveral. According to one estimate, a total of 20 million lb. (9,080,000 kg) of scallop meats could be pro- duced annually on the Cape Kennedy grounds by 40 vessels (National Marine Service, see foot- note 7). Despite this potential, commercial op- erators have had problems both in locating con- centrations of scallops and in the use of the mechanical shucker-eviscerators. These factors are reflected in the production figures. Northeastern Gulf of Mexico Exploratory fishing by private organizations from 1954 to 1958 located commercial concentra- tions of calico scallops in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico in the general area of Cape San Bias, Fla. (University of Miami Marine Laboratory""; Bullis and Ingle, 1959; Carpenter, 1967). Ex- ploratory fishing by the Bureau of Commercial Fisheries from 1957 to 1960 revealed extensive beds of scallops in 19 to 46 m between Carra- belle, Fla., and Mobile, Ala. Heaviest concen- trations were in depths less than 37 m off Cape San Bias and off Gulf Shores, Ala. (Carpenter, 1967). Beginning in March 1958 a large bed of scal- lops in 13 to 37 m of water northwest of Cape San Bias was fished commercially. Scallops were caught at first using scallop trawls and later with dredges (Bullis and Ingle, 1959). The scallops were landed in Panama City, Fla., and shucked by hand (Carpenter, 1967) . By September 1958. the yield of meat per scallop had declined to where fishing was no longer profitable. These scallops disappeared from the bed sometime pri- or to the summer of 1959 (Hulings, 1961). "" University of Miami Marine Laboratory. 1954. Shrimp exploration - report of cruise No. 1 - trawler Goodwill, June 17-July 10, 1954. Mar. Lab., Univ. Mi- ami, unpublished circular 1 prepared for Tampa Shrimp Producers' Assoc, and Fla. State Board Conserv., 3 p., ML 7876. Production in the northeastern Gulf area since 1958 has been restricted by poor market price (Bullis and Ingle, 1959), inadequate shucking facilities (Captiva, 1966) and by fluctuating stocks of scallops. Recently, a shore-based plant for machine-processing was constructed at Apalachicola, Fla. SUMMARY 1. The calico scallop, Argopecten gibbtis, sup- ports a small, developing fishery off the south- eastern coast of the United States and in the Gulf of Mexico. This report summarizes avail- able information concerning calico scallop biol- ogy and the fishery. 2. The calico scallop is separated from closely related species within its range by shell char- acteristics. Shell morphology of the calico scal- lop varies with locality. The valves are well in- flated and there are 17 to 23 ribs on the right valve. Shell color is variable, usually with red or maroon mottling or banding on a white or yellow background. Maximum size is about 80 mm in shell diameter. 3. This species apparently is restricted to the western North Atlantic Ocean. Its known range is from the northern side of the Greater Antilles and throughout the Gulf of Mexico to Bermuda and slightly north of Cape Hatteras. It is gen- erally found in open marine water on continental or insular shelves. Depths of occurrence, how- ever, range from less than 2 m to 370 m. 4. Environmental factors that probably in- fluence distribution and/or growth of the calico scallop include currents, temperatures, salinities, substrates, and food supply. Scallop larvae are transported by currents, and eddies formed by coastal projections may cause repeated settling of the larvae, resulting in great concentrations of scallops near capes. Scallop beds are generally distributed along the flowlines of currents. Bot- tom temperatures associated with calico scallops range from 9.9° to 33.0°C; salinities from about 31 to 37'/ r . Scallops are generally found on sand- shell substrates, and shell may be necessary for successful settlement of small scallops (spat). Scallop abundance may be dependent upon plank- ton concentration, and possibly related to up- welling. 5. The greatest known abundance is off the Florida east coast near Cape Kennedy. Lesser 16 concentrations are found near Cape Lookout, N.C., and in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico near Cape San Bias, Fla. Scallop densities may exceed 108 per square meter (10 per square foot). Abrupt yearly differences in scallop abundance have been reported for the grounds off North Carolina and in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico. 6. Maturation and spawning time can be de- termined from ovarian color. Spawning activity may be controlled by water temperature. Spawn- ing on the Cape Kennedy grounds probably oc- curs year around, with maximum spawning in the spring. For North Carolina waters, there is no evidence of winter spawning. 7. The length of planktonic larval life from fertilization to settlement is about 14 days. The spat are about 0.25 mm in shell height when first set. The rate of shell growth per month decreases as size increases. Growth may vary between areas. For the Cape Kennedy grounds, preliminary studies indicate that scallops reach 40 to 45 mm in shell height in 6 to 8 months. Maximum age averages 18 to 20 months and does not exceed 24 months. 8. The causes of mass mortalities of calico scallops are not known. Drastic water temper- ature fluctuations and predation may be factors. In addition, there is a postspawning die-off. 9. Numerous marine animals, including par- asites and predators, have been listed as asso- ciates of the calico scallop. 10. Calico scallop larvae occur at all levels in the water column. The young scallops (spat) attach to a variety of substrates. Swimming ability is apparently most pronounced in small scallops. On the bottom, scallops settle in de- pressions or furrows. 11. Development of the fishery has been slow and erratic due to problems related to stock availability and processing. Greatest produc- tion has been in North Carolina, and this is re- lated to the proximity to shore of the scallop grounds, and to the availability of processing facilities. The history of the fishery in North Carolina and in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico indicates that in those areas, fluctuations in stock availability from year-to-year will be a con- tinuing problem. The apparent large concen- trations of scallops off the Florida east coast, and the introduction and improvement of pro- cessing machines suggest that the harvest of cal- ico scallops will increase in the next few years. LITERATURE CITED ANDERSON, V^. W., and J. W. GEHRINGER. 1965. Biological-statistical census of the species en- tering fisheries in the Cape Canaveral area. U.S. Fish V^^ildl. Serv., Spec. Sci. Rep. Fish. 514, 79 p. ANDERSON, V^. W., J. E. MOORE, and H. R. GORDY. 1961. Oceanic salinities of the south Atlantic coast of the United States, Theodore N. Gill Cruises 1-9, 1953-54. U.S. Fish Wildl. Serv., Spec. Sci. Rep. Fish. 389, 207 p. ANONYMOUS. 1968. A follow up on scallops - a breakthrough in taste. Ocean Ind. 3(4) : 34-35. 1969. Shuckers for Florida calico beds - new scal- lopers detailed. Natl. Fish. 50(1): 1-B (Apr.). BULLIS, H. R., JR., and R. CUMMINS, JR. 1961. An interim report of the Cape Canaveral calico scallop bed. Commer. Fish. Rev. 23(10): 1-8. BULLIS, H. R., JR., and R. M. INGLE. 1959. A new fishery for scallops in western Florida. Proc. Gulf Caribb. Fish. Inst., 11th Annu. Sess., p. 75-78. BULLIS, H. R., JR., and T. D. LOVE. 1961. Application of steaming and vacuum to shucking and cleaning scallops. Commer. Fish. Rev. 23(5) :l-4. BULLIS, H. R., JR., and J. R. THOMPSON. 1965. Collections by the exploratory fishing vessels Orego7i, Silver Bay, Combat, and Pelican made during 1956 to 1960 in the southwestern North Atlantic. U.S. Fish Wildl. Serv., Spec. Sci. Rep. Fish. 510, 130 p. CAPTIVA, F. J. 1966. Resume of accomplishments in fishery devel- opment made by the R/V Oregon. In Annual report exploratory fishing and gear research, Bu- reau of Commercial Fisheries Region 2 for fiscal year 1964, p. 2-5. U.S. Fish Wildl. Serv., Circ. 236. CARPENTER, J. S. 1967. History of scallop and clam explorations in the Gulf of Me.xico. Commer. Fish. Rev. 29(1) : 47-53. CERAME-VIVAS, M. J., and I. E. GRAY. 1966. The distributional pattern of benthic inver- tebrates of the Continental Shelf off North Car- olina. Ecology 47:260-270. CHENG, T. C. 1967. Marine molluscs as hosts for symbiosis with a review of known parasites of commercially im- portant species. In Sir Frederick S. Russell (edi- tor). Advances in marine biology, 5:1-424. Aca- demic Press, New York and London. CHESTNUT, A. F. 1951. The oyster and other mollusks in North Car- olina, hi Harden F. Taylor (editor). Survey of 17 marine fisheries of North Carolina, p. 141-190. The University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill. COMMERCIAL FISHERIES REVIEW. 1960. Calico scallop fishery in Florida. Commer. Fish. Rev. 22(12) :41-43. 1962. Calico scallop explorations off North Caro- lina: M/V "Silver Bay" Cruise 39. Commer. Fish. Rev. 24(8) : 38-39. 1967. "Oregon" dredges scallops off Florida. Com- mer. Fish. Rev. 29(11) :22-24. 1968. "Oregon" checks Florida's scallop grounds. Commer. Fish. Rev. 30(12) :39-40. 1970. "Bowers" explores for scallop off Florida's east coast. Commer. Fish. Rev. 32(6) :8-9. CUMMINS, R., JR. 1971. Calico scallops of the southeastern United States 1959-69. Natl. Mar. Fish. Serv., Spec. Sci. ^ Rep. Fish. 627, 22 p. CUMMINS, R., JR., and J. B. RIVERS. 1970. Calico scallop fishery of southeastern U.S. A photo review of latest developments. Commer. Fish. Rev. 32(3) : 38-43. CUMMINS, R., JR., J. B. RIVERS, and P. J. STRUHSAKER. 1962. Exploratory fishing off the coast of North Carolina, September 1959-July 1960. Commer. Fish. Rev. 24(1): 1-9. DRUMMOND, S. B. 1969. Explorations for calico scallop, Pecten gibbus, in the area off Cape Kennedy, Florida, 1960-66. Fish. Ind. 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Growth of the scallops, Argopecten irradians concentricus (Say) and Argopecten gibbus (Linne), as influenced by food and temperature. Ph.D. thesis, Duke Univ., Durham, N.C., 127 p. LYLES, C. H. 1969. Fishery statistics of the United States 1967. U.S. Fish Wildl. Serv., Stat. Dig. 61, 490 p. MELLON, D., JR. 1969. The reflex control of rhythmic motor output during swimming in the scallop. Z. Vgl. Physiol. 62:318-336. MOE, M. A., JR. 1963. A survey of offshore fishing in Florida. Fla. State Board Conserv. Mar. Lab. Prof. Pap. Ser. 4, 117 p. NEUMANN, A. C. 1965. Processes of recent carbonate sedimentation in Harrington Sound, Bermuda. Bull. Mar. Sci. 15:987-1035. PARKER, R. H. 1956. Macro-invertebrate assemblages as indicators of sedimentary environments in east Mississippi Delta region. Bull. Am. Assoc. Pet. Geol. 40(2) : 295-376. 1960. Ecology and distributional patterns of marine macro-invertebrates, northern Gulf of Mexico. In Francis P. Shepard, Fred B Phleger, and Tjeerd H. 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Three species of Odostomia from North Car- olina, with description of new species. Nautilus 74(4):149-157. 1962. The polychaete Ceratonereis tridentata as a pest of the scallop Aequipecten gibbus. Biol. Bull. (Woods Hole) 122:149-159. WELLS, H. W., M. J. WELLS, and I. E. GRAY. 1961. Food of the sea-star Astropecten articidatics. Biol. Bull. (Woods Hole) 120:265-271. 1964. The calico scallop community in North Car- olina. Bull. Mar. Sci. Gulf Caribb. 14:561-593. ZAHL, P. A. 1969. The magic lure of sea shells. Natl. Geogr. 135:386-429. GPO 985-0 18 19 WHOI [ ibrary - Serials 5 WHSE 01836 621. Predation by sculpins on fall chinook salmon, Oncorhyncltiis tshawtitscha, fry of hatchery or- igin. By Benjamin G. Patten. February 1971, iii + 14 pp., 6 figs., 9 tables. 622. Number and lengths, by season, of fishes caught with an otter trawl near Woods Hole, Massa- chusetts, September 1961 to December 1962. By F. E. Lux and F. E. Nichy. February 1971, iii + 15 pp., 3 figs., 19 tables. 623. Apparent abundance, distribution, and migra- tions of albacore, Thioinus alalungn, on the North Pacific longline grounds. By Brian J. Rothschild and ^larian Y. Y. Yong. September 1970, v -(- 37 pp., 19 figs., 5 tables. 624. Influence of mechanical processing on the quality and yield of bay scallop meats. Bv N. B. Webb and F. B. Thomas. April 1971, ii'i + 11 pp., 9 figs., 3 tables. 625. Distribution of salmon and related oceanographic features in the North Pacific Ocean spring 1968. By Robert R. French, Richard G. Bakkala, Ma- sanao Osako, and Jun Ito. March 1971, iii -)- 22 pp., 19 figs., 3 tables. 626. Commercial fishery and biology of the fresh- water shrimp, Macrohracliium, in the Lower St. Paul River, Liberia, 1952-53. By George C. Mil- ler. February 1971, iii + 13 pp., 8 figs., 7 tables. 627. Calico scallops of the Southeastern United States, 1959-69. By Robert Cummins, Jr. June 1971, iii + 22 pp., 23 figs., 3 tables. 628. Fur Seal Investigations, 1969. By NMFS, Ma- rine IMammal Biological Laboratory. August 1971, 82 pp., 20 figs., 44 tables, 23 appendi.x A tables, 10 appendix B tables. 629. Analysis of the operations of seven Hawaiian skipjack tuna fishing vessels, June-August 1967. Bv Richard N. Uchida and Ray F. Sumida. March 1971, v + 25 pp., 14 figs., 21 tables. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402 - 35 cents. 630. Blue crab meat. I. Preservation by freezing. July 1971, iii + 13 pp., 5 figs., 2 tables. II. Effect of chemical treatments on acceptability. By Jurgen H. Strasser, Jean S. Lennon, and Fred- erick J. King. July 1971, iii -f 12 pp., 1 fig., 9 tables. 631. Occurrence of thiaminase in .some common aquat- ic animals of the United States and Canada. By R. A. Greig and R. H. Gnaedinger. July 1971, iii -f 7 pp., 2 tables. 632. An annotated bibliography of attempts to rear the larvae of marine fishes in the laboi-atory. By Robert C. May. August 1971, iii + 24 pp.^ 1 ap- pendix I table, 1 appendix II table. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Govern- ment Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402 - 35 cents. 633. Blueing of processed crab meat. II. Identification of some factors involved in the blue discoloration of canned crab meat Callinectes sapidus. By Melvin E. Waters. May 1971, iii + 7 pp., 1 fig!, 3 tables. 634. Age composition, weight, length, and sex of her- ring, Clupea paUasii, used for reduction in Alas- ka, 1929-66. By Gerald M. Reid. July 1971, iii + 25 pp., 4 figs., 18 tables. 635. A bibliography of the blackfin tuna, Thumnis aflanticiis (Les.son). By Grant L. Beardsley and David C. Simmons. August 1971, 10 pp. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402 - 25 cents. 636. Oil pollution on Wake Island from the tanker R. C. Sto)ier. By Reginald M. Gooding. May 1971, iii -f- 12 pp., 8 figs., 2 tables. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Govern- ment Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402 - Price 25 cents. 637. Occurrence of larval, juvenile, and mature crabs in the vicinity of Beaufort Inlet, North Carolina. By Donnie L. Dudley and Mayo H. Judy. August 1971, iii + 10 pp., 1 fig., 5 tables. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Govern- ment Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402 - Price 25 cents. 638. Length-weight relations of haddock from com- mercial landings in New England, 1931-55. By Bradford E. Brown and Richard C. Hennemuth. August 1971, V + 13 pp., 16 fig., 6 tables, 10 appendix A tables. For sale by the Superintend- ent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402 - Price 25 cents. 639. A hydrographic survev of the Galveston Bay system, Texas 1963-66. By E. J. Pullen, W. L. Trent, and G. B. Adams. October 1971, v 't- is pp., 15 figs., 12 tables. For sale by the Super- intendent of Documents, U.S. Government Print- ing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402 - Price 30 cents. 640. Annotated bibliography on the fishing industry and biology of tlie blue crab, Callinectes sapidus. By Marlin E. Tagatz and Ann Bowman Hall. August 1971, 94 pp. For sale by the Superinten- dent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402 - Price $1.00. 641. Use of threadfin shad, Dorosoma petenense, as live bait during experimental pole-and-line fish- ing for skipjack tuna, Katsuwo7ius pelamis, in Hawaii. By Robert T. B. Iversen. August 1971, iii -I- 10 pp., 3 figs., 7 tables. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402 - Price 25 cents. 642. Atlantic menhaden Brevoortia tyrannus resource and fishery — analysis of decline. By Kenneth A. Henry. August 1971, v -f 32 pp., 40 figs., 5 appendix figs., 3 tables, 2 appendix tables. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402 - Price 45 cents. 646. Dissolved nitrogen concentrations in the Colum- bia and Snake Rivers in 1970 and their effect on Chinook salmon and steelhead trout. By Wesley J. Ebel. August 1971, iii + 7 pp., 2 figs., 6 tables. For sale by the Superintendent of Doc- uments, U.S. Government Printing Office, Wash- ington, D.C. 20402 - Price 20 cents. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE NATIONAL OCEANIC 8, ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION NATIONAL MARINE FISHERIES SERVICE SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS STAFF BLDG. 67, NAVAL SUPPORT ACTIVITY SEAHLE, WASHINGTON 98115 OFFICIAL BUSINESS POSTAGE AND FEES PAID U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE