668 MARINE PRODUCTS OF COMMERCE 



underside of the body. After its free-swimming existence the young scallop excretes 

 a gelatinous substance which immediately hardens in the water and enables 

 the scallop to attach itself by means of a byssus. As the scallop grows older, 

 the foot gradually becomes smaller in proportion to the size of the shell. The 

 mollusk takes on the characteristics of the adult, and begins to swim by opening 

 and closing its shell. Scallops grow rapidly and are short-lived; only a few live 

 2 years. Scallops spawn when they are a year old, but few spawn more than once 

 during their life. 



Because of limited space a detailed description of the anatomy of the scallop 

 cannot be given. This subject is considered in detail in Belding's report (1910). 



Chemical Composition of Scallops. Analyses have been made of nearly all of 

 the species of shellfish commonly eaten in America. According to the figures given 

 in Table 148 scallops are higher in protein than any of the other common edible 



Table 148. Composition of Scallops. 



Source: 

 Food Materials," U. S. Dept. Agr., Office Expt. Sta. Bull, 28, Revised (1906). 



shellfish. However, it must be remembered that only the adductor muscle of the 

 scallop is eaten, whereas practically all the flesh of other shellfish is eaten. 



Researchers have hydrolyzed the edible portion of the scallop and determined 

 the amino acids resulting as cleavage products; their results are presented in 

 Table 149. 



Table 149. Amino Acids Obtained from the Proteins of Scallops. 



52.51 



The Scallop Fishery. The scallop fishery is a seasonal industry since most states 

 enforce a closed season. In Massachusetts the closed season extends from April first 



