Scope for growth of cultivated Pacific and Gulf of California populations of lion's paw scallop Nodipecten subnodosus, and their reciprocal transplants

Abstract

In the present work, the relative effects of the season (early vs. late summer), site (Gulf vs. Pacific study sites), the population of origin (Gulf vs. Pacific) and associated abiotic variables were determined in two geographically-separated Nodipecten subnodosus populations and their reciprocal transplants, through the scope for growth (SFG) and net growth efficiency (K2) using a portable open-flow system. Results indicate that both energy acquisition and expenditure were significantly affected by season, site, and population factors. Scallop energy acquisition and growth efficiency were highest during the earlier, cooler part of the summer and higher at the Pacific site where food availability was highest. Significantly higher respiration rates were measured for the Pacific scallop population, leading to significantly lower net growth efficiency than scallops of Gulf origin, which indicates a physiological advantage for Gulf scallops during the suboptimal growth conditions present during summer months on both coasts of the Baja California peninsula. It may have important implications for aquaculture enterprises in this region, and may also confirm the genetic divergence between these two geographically separated populations. The advantages of the open-flow system for in situ ecophysiological studies in aquatic organisms are discussed.

Conversion factors for dry weight for the lion paw scallop (Nodipected subnodosus Sowerby, 1835)

“…In Mexico, there is a growing interest in developing commercial aquaculture for the lion's paw scallop (Ruíz-Verdugo et al, 2016;Purce et al, 2020), but unlike what happens with other scallops in several regions of the world, aquaculture for this species remains a pipe dream, at least in part due to a lack of organized and publicly available technical and scientific knowledge. Fortunately, research is underway to improve our understanding of the species, the organization of its populations, their genetic and phenotypic responses to environmental changes, and our capacity for ecological modeling.…”