The spectral volume scattering function (VSF) was measured in a coastal environment from 0.6 degrees to 177.3 degrees by use of a recently developed device. The spectral variations of the particulate VSF and phase function (i.e., ratio of the VSF to the scattering coefficient) were examined as a function of the scattering angle. The angular dependency of both VSF and phase- function spectra was highly sensitive to the absorption and to the size distribution of the particles. As a result, the use of spectrally neutral phase functions in radiative-transfer modeling is questioned.