🐚 Scallops are a cosmopolitan family of bivalves found in all of the world's oceans, although never in freshwater. They are one of the very few groups of bivalves to be primarily "free-living," with many species capable of rapidly swimming short distances and even migrating across the ocean floor by jet propulsion—clapping their shells together to expel water and rocket through the water.⁠ ⁠ What makes scallops truly remarkable is their sophisticated sensory system: they possess up to 200 tiny eyes along their shell edges, each with a lens and retina that can detect shadows and movement of potential predators. Unlike their sedentary relatives like clams and oysters, scallops are the athletes of the bivalve world, using their powerful adductor muscle (the part we eat) to escape danger with surprising speed and agility.⁠ ⁠ _____⁠ ⁠ 🎥 courtesy of discovercrystalriver⁠ ⁠ ⁠ ⁠ #science #scallop #scalloping #scallops #ocean #sea #sealife #oceanlife #oceanfloor #seafloor #underwater #oceanog...