Diver Records a Swimming Scallop and It’s the Coolest Thing Anyone Will See Today

Scuba diving and freediving allow us to see a different world than we are used to. Jules Casey, also known as @onebreathdiver on Instagram, is an award-winning Australian photographer who shares some cool things she sees in the deep blue waters she dives in. She shared an amazing video of a scallop swimming on Sunday, June 2nd and it's crazy to see!

The video starts with three scallops lying on the ocean floor. One scallop suddenly jumps up and starts swimming through the water. The scallop continues on, opening and closing its shell to help propel it through the water. The other two do the same, one at a time, both settling near the first one.

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I had no idea that scallops swam! The sight was also a surprise to Jules who said in a comment, "Tick Tick Boom...Swimming Scallops...who knew?!" @lifeontheflorida coast admitted, "I watched this video like 100 times...it’s so cute!!" and Jules responded, "They are pretty adorable!" @bye_bye_baby1234 had my favorite comment, "Now this was so fun. I belly laughed. How adorable! Nature is so beautiful and extremely interesting. Thank you for sharing that." I couldn't agree more!

Related: Diver’s Game of ‘Hide and Seek’ With Humpback Whale Is Giving People Anxiety

Facts About Swimming Scallops

I guess I thought that scallops were like clams and mussels, just attaching themselves to rocks and hanging on. I was wrong! Turns out they are the only bivalve mollusk that actually does swim.

Ocean Conservatory explains more, "Sea scallops can swim by quickly opening and closing their shells, allowing them to escape from predators. They also open their shells to filter plankton out of the seawater for food—the tiny organisms get caught in the scallop’s mucus, then tiny hairs called cilia move the food towards the mouth." Here's an interesting fact: unlike their relatives like oysters and clams, scallops cannot close their shells all the way due to the way their shells work.

Female sea scallops can produce hundreds of millions of eggs in one year! They have so many babies because most of them won't make it to adulthood. Scallops reproduce through spawning; the males and females both release eggs and sperm into a water column where they combine. They then attach to sea grass along the ocean's floor.

Scallops have a lot of eyes, but they don't have the greatest vision. They have approximately 50 bright blue eyes along the edge of their shells, and while their eyes can detect movement and light, they don’t provide detailed vision.

Did you know that you can tell how old a scallop is? Each ring on a scallop's shell represents one year of growth. If you are ever diving and come across one, you can count the rings to determine how old it is. Who knew that scallops were so cool!

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