Turkey wing mussels of both sexes were collected from Harrington Sound, Bermuda and dosed after a week-long acclimation period with (9-/sup 14/C)phenanthrene (714 MBq/mmol). They were transferred into 8 liters of seawater containing 8 ..mu..g of labelled phenanthrene. Results show that the accumulation of labelled phenanthrene in the turkey wing mussel was very low compared to that found in other species. In the hepatopancreas, the uptake of phenanthrene based on the water concentration was only 4% of the corresponding value found in the calico clam (Macrocallista maculata) inhabiting the same area. In comparison, the uptake of phenanthrene in a temperate mollusc such as the horse mussel (Modiola modiolus) was also considerably higher than in the turkey wing (approx. 4 times). It therefore seems likely that these are due to species variations rather than environmental variations between subtropical and temperate areas. (JMT)