Fishing, sale and consumption of this species is illegal, so please report such incidents. The Pinna nobilis is an endangered species in the Mediterranean, under strict protection and all forms of deliberate capture or killing are prohibited. This species has been critically reduced throughout the Mediterranean during the last decades due to both fishing and using the shell for decorative purposes.

Pinna nobilis is not inherently toxic but as a filter feeder it has a strong propensity to accumulate toxins, pollutants, bacteria and parasites which may potentially cause issues if ingested.

A large bivalve mollusk with a distinctive, elongated, and fragile, fan-shaped shell. Shell triangular, and tapering to a point. The shell is light yellow-brown to dark brown, sometimes with darker patches. The Pinna nobilis looks like/can be missidentified as: Panopea generosa, due to large size and burrowing lifestyle. However, their siphons are much more prominent and they lack the distinctive pointed shape of the pen shell. Atrina fragilis (Fan mussel): share key characteristics, including their large, triangular, and fragile shells, and their habit of embedding their pointed ends in sediment while anchoring with byssal threads. However, P. nobilis can grow significantly larger than Atrina fragilis.

The Pinna nobilis is one of the largest bivalves, native to the Mediterranean region!