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Pecten jacobaeus, the Mediterranean scallop, is a species of scallop, an edible saltwater scallop, a marine bivalve mollusc in the family Pectinidae, the scallops. World Register of Marine species
The mollusc has at the edge of the mantle many short tentacles, between which there are a total of 60 blue-millimeter lens eyes. By quickly closing of the two valves it can swim away several meters in case of danger.
These scallops eat organisms and other floating food particles, which they obtain by filtering sea water with their .
Fossils of Pecten jacobaeus first appear at the beginning of the Pliocene and are quite common in the Pliocene and Pleistocene deposits of Italy.
Commercial value
Scallops of this species are collected commercially for human consumption using such techniques as the Rapido trawl.
Popular culture
In a Christian context, this species is traditionally associated with Saint James, also known as James, son of Zebedee, also known as Saint Jacob, hence the specific name jacobaeus. It is also known as the "Pilgrim's scallop", as the shells were used by the pilgrims in the Middle Ages as a cup.
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