This bottom-dwelling saltwater bivalve, is found in open water and available wild-caught. There are 2 main varieties, Northern and Ballot’s, both with almost round, flat shells, the top being distinctively smooth with concentric circular bands of browny reds, darker towards the outside edge.
They occur around most of the Australian coast (except from Esperance, WA, east to Sydney). The Ballot’s is trawled mainly off Queensland (north of Torquay), with some coming from Shark Bay and south-western WA. The Northern is a bycatch of coastal trawling (mainly for Prawns) and is mostly exported to South East Asia and the USA.