Flame scallop

Care at a glance

Overview

It needs an established tank of 115 litres or more at 24 to 27 C and pH 8.1 to 8.4 with a shaded crevice to tuck into. The hard part is food, since it is a pure filter feeder that needs frequent target feeding of phytoplankton and fine particles, and most specimens slowly starve over a few months. It is harmless to corals and fish but is best attempted only by keepers ready to dose plankton often.

In the wild

The flame scallop is a filter feeding bivalve with a rough ribbed shell and a brilliant red mantle fringed by long red and white tentacles. It wedges itself into a shaded crevice and fans water through its gills to feed. Despite the bright color it is a clam relative, not a coral.

Good to know

Ctenoides scaber, also listed under its old name Lima scabra, gets its red color from carotenoid pigments in its tissue. A close relative, the electric flame scallop, produces rippling flashes of light along its mantle edge, but this species does not.

Common questions

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