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PECTINIDAE |
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Ylistrum balloti (Bernardi, 1861) Ballot’s Saucer Scallop Description: Shape circular, plus small, almost equal sized auricles; both vales weakly inflated. Valves gaping dorsally. Exterior smooth, glossy, with very weak commarginal growth ridges. Interior white, with 42-54 radial ribs, not present on exterior. Hinge line with elongate teeth. Shell exterior colour markedly different between valves; left valve brown or red-brown with darker commarginal bands, right valve white with commarginal brown lines and scattered spots. Size: Up to 140 mm high. Distribution: Indonesia, New Caledonia and Australia. In Australia, there is a disjunct distribution; in eastern Australia, from central Qld southwards to Sydney; in WA, from western Great Australian Bight northwards to Broome. The overall distribution of this species is subject to debate, because there is no clear distinction between the shells in Australia and those in southeast Asia. As Ballot’s Saucer Scallop, the northwestern populations (and Amusium pleronectes) are fished commercially. Habitat: Lives unattached on sand, in the subtidal zone, down to about 100 m. Fig. 1: Off Newcastle, NSW 73-82 m (C.93025)
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