October 9, 2014 — When seafood lovers think Virginia, they think oysters and blue crabs — two iconic species of the Chesapeake Bay.
But when it comes to seafood revenue, neither the oyster nor the blue crab is the cash cow that the little sea scallop represents for the commonwealth.
In fact, sea scallops — which aren't even fished in Virginia waters — account for the lion's share of the total value of Virginia landings, outpacing other species by millions of dollars every year.
"It's kind of the silent fishery in Virginia," said marine biologist David Rudders at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) in Gloucester Point. "You ride down the road and you see crab pots next to a river or creek. You see a lot of evidence of oysters. But scallops — you would never know they're there."
But they are there, by the billions, lying on the deep ocean floor. And when it comes to Virginia fisheries, they're pearls of great value.
Last year, sea scallops brought in $32.6 million at dockside, compared to $24.2 million for the blue crabs that constitute the state's second-most valuable fishery. Landing figures come from the Virginia Marine Resources Commission (VMRC).
It's not that sea scallops are harvested in more massive numbers. In fact, Virginia watermen hauled in 18 million pounds of blue crabs last year, six times more than the 3 million pounds of scallop meat.
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