San Diego Scallop Shell, Leopecten diegensis

San Diego Scallop Shell, Left Valve, Leopecten diegensis.

San Diego Scallop Shell, Right Valve, Leopecten diegensis.  Size: 12.2 cm (4.8 inches) x  10.3 cm (4.1 inches). Shell collected from the beach in the greater San Diego area, San Diego, California. Collection, photograph and identification courtesy of Bob Hillis, Ivins, Utah.

The San Diego Scallop, Leopecten diegensis (Dall, 1898), is a bivalve mollusk that is a member of the Pectinidae Family of Scallop Shells. They are known in Mexico as vieira de San Diego. The shell is a classic fan shaped scallop with equal sized auricles (ears) on both sides of the hinge; the right valve is somewhat convex with radiating flat-topped ribs, and the left valve is flat or slightly convex with rounded ribs. The two valves are differently colored, the right valve is buff, orange, white or yellow and the left is brown or reddish brown, sometimes with white specks or blotches. San Diego Scallops reach a maximum 12.7 cm (5.0 inches) in length and 10.7 cm (4.2 inches) in height.

The San Diego Scallops are found on shale or sand bottoms at depths between 10 m (30 feet)and 400 m (1,300 feet). They range from Northern California to Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur. This species has not been documented in the Sea of Cortez.

Synonyms include Euvola diegensis, Pecten diegensis, and Pecten floridus.