At the northern extreme of its range in Massachusetts, germ and gonial cells complete and begin development in winter and early spring.[1]: 376 At the southern extreme the timeline is very different, with cytoplasmic growth stages found to occur in July in Tarpon Springs, Florida, when the water approaches its highest temperatures of the year.[1]: 376
This species of scallop used to support a large wild fishery on the East Coast of the United States, but since the 1950s it has decreased greatly. This is apparently the result of several negative influences, one of which is a reduction in sea grasses (to which bay scallop spat attach) due to increased coastal development and concomitant nutrient runoff.
By contrast, the Atlantic sea scallop (Placopecten magellanicus) is at historically high levels of abundance because the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Reauthorization Act of 2006 put a limit on catch numbers and led to a recovery from overfishing.
Scallop aquaculture is currently being practiced in Florida.[3] They were introduced into China in the 1980s and are the basis of a vibrant aquaculture industry in that country[4] and attempted elsewhere.[where?]
