Introduction into France of the Japanese oyster (Crassostrea gigas)

Abstract

The Japanese oyster (Crassostrea gigas) has been introduced in France on a large scale to replace cultivation of the Portuguese oyster (Crassostrea angulata), affected by a viral disease. The importation took place from 1971 ta 1975, with broodstock coming from British Columbia (Canada) and spat from Japan. Good growth rate and success of the natural setting on the French Atlantic coast attested to the success ofthis implantation, with a production which oeached 80000 t by 1976. The precautionary measures associated with this transfer limited the implantation of an introduced fauna, 15 years after, to: Balanus amphitrite, Aiptasia pulchella and, on the Mediterranean coast, Undaria pinnatifida and Laminaria japonica. The authors also discuss the possible role of Crassostrea gigas in spreading the viral disease. L'huître japonaise (Crassostrea gigas) a été introduite massivement en France dans le but de subvenir au remplacement de l'élevage de l'huître portugaise (Crassostrea angulata) décimée par une maladie virale. Ces importations effectuées de 1971 à 1975 concernent des géniteurs provenant de Colombie Britannique (Canada) et du naissain en provenance du Japon. De bonnes performances de croissance et le succès du captage sur la côte atlantique française traduisent la réussite de l'implantation de cette espèce dont la production a atteint, dès 1976, 80000 tonnes. Les précautîons associées à cette importation ont permis de limiter l'implantation d'une faune associée dont les principales espèces, 15 ans après, sont: Balanus amphitrite, Aiptasia pulchella et, sur la côte méditerranéenne, Undaria pinnatifida et Laminaria japonica. Enfin est discuté le rôle possible de Crassostrea gigas dans la propagation de la maladie à virus.

High Levels of Icosapentaenoic Acid in the Lipids of Oyster Crassostrea gigas Ranging over Both Japan and France

“…Similarly low levels of TAG in a similar-size sample 8 52. 2 , which was collected in the same season as the French samples, were observed; however, a trend of high TAG levels in the Japanese samples was generally found. The oyster might be influenced by different environments, such as nutritional conditions, and influenced by trophic phytoplankton [28][29][30] .…”

“…The Pacifi c oyster in the Atlantic Ocean was brought from Japan to France about 30 years ago after the extinction of the flat oyster Ostrea edulis in France, has subsequently adapted in the Atlantic Ocean and its distribution has independently expanded [1][2] .…”

Satellite remote sensing reveals a positive impact of living oyster reefs on microalgal biofilm development

“…In Europe, it was massively imported in the 1970s and rapidly became the main cultivated species, following the decline of previously farmed oysters which had been struck by large-scale epizootic outbreaks (Grizel and Héral, 1991;Humphreys et al, 2014). During recent decades, C. gigas benefited from coastal eutrophication and rising sea temperature (Thomas et al, 2016), resulting in a poleward expansion of its distribution (Dutertre et al, 2010) and the formation of dense reefs along many coastal areas (Diederich, 2006;Brandt et al, 2008;Le Bris et al, 2016).…”

Summer mortality of hatchery-produced Pacific oyster spat (Crassostrea gigas). I. Estimation of genetic parameters for survival and growth

“…This species has been extensively (both accidentally and intentionally) transported beyond its native oriental range (for review, see Shatkin et al, 1997). In France, C. gigas was introduced in the early 1970s (Grizel and Héral 1991) after the collapse in production of the Portuguese oyster (C. angulata) due to massive mortality events (Comps et al, 1976;Comps, 1983;Héral, 1989). In 2002, French oyster production represented 107,000 metric tons at a value of $210 million (FAO, 2004a,b).…”