Reproductive condition and fecundity of female Suminoe oyster Crassostrea ariakensis (Fujita, 1913) from Seomjin River estuary on the south coast of Korea during post-spawning period

Abstract

While Suminoe oyster Crassostrea ariakensis (Fujita, 1913) occurs widely in subtidal estuaries on the south coast of Korea, few studies have reported their reproduction. In the present study, we estimated reproductive effort of female Suminoe oysters from Seomjin River estuary on the south coast of Korea during spawning and post-spawning. Gametogenic condition was assessed using histology and reproductive effort and/or fecundity was determined using an indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Histology revealed that at Seomjin River estuary in 2008, the females spawned mostly in August and September. Gonad somatic index (GSI, the reproductive effot) of the female in ripe stage was estimated as 0.346, which was equivalent to 108 million eggs. The potential fecundity of Suminoe oyster determined in this study was smaller than the fecundity reported previously from the same sampling site (162 to 910 million/oyster), possibly due to size of the oysters used in the analysis.