Spiny Oyster Shell, Spondylus leucacanthus

Spiny Oyster Shell, Spondylus leucacanthus. Shell provided by the commercial fishermen of the greater Los Cabos area, March 2014. Size:  6.6 cm (2.6 inches) x 6.6 cm (2.6 inches).

Spiny Oyster Shell, Spondylus leucacanthus. Shell provided by the commercial fishermen of the greater Los Cabos area, March 2014. Size:  9.3 cm (3.7 inches) x 9.9 cm (3.9 inches).

The Spiny Oyster, Spondylus leucacanthus (Broderip, 1833), is a bivalve mollusk that is a member of the Spondylidae Family of Spiny Oysters. They are also known as a Thorny Oyster and in Mexico as ostra espinosa and ostra espinosa del Pacifico. They have a round outline with a straight hinge and small ears or wings on both sides of the hinge. The exterior of this exquisite shell is decorated with long, beautiful delicate spines that can be up 8 cm (3.1 inches) in length. The exterior has a white base with yellow, coral, orange, or brown spreading toward the hinge; the interior is white. Spiny Oyster shells reach a maximum length of 15.6 cm (6.1 inches), that does not include the spines, and 15.6 cm (6.1 inches) in height.

Spiny Oysters are found attached to rocky reefs at depths between 10 m (35 feet) and 91 m (300 feet). They range from Cedros Island, Baja California to Ecuador and in the Sea of Cortez from Bahía de los Ángeles, Baja California to Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur.

A synonym is Spondylus ursipes.