Wayne O’Connor

Research Leader Aquaculture and Centre Director Port Stephens

Research interests  Mollusc culture and breeding  Molluscan ecology  Molluscan physiology

Background Wayne O’Connor is a Principal Research Scientist at the NSW Department of Primary Industries’ Port Stephens Fisheries Institute.

He first joined NSW Fisheries* in 1984 and has over 25 years experience in aquaculture research, working on a variety programs including algal culture and the development of propagation techniques for a number of molluscs such as oysters (edible and pearl), scallops, mussels and clams.

He leads molluscan research programs that range from the development of selective breeding techniques and triploid induction to environmental impact and ecotoxicological evaluations. Dr O’Connor is an Adjunct Associate Professor in the Faculty of Science Health and Education at the University of the Sunshine Coast. He is a member of a number of molluscan societies and serves on the editorial boards for the journals Aquaculture and Aquaculture Research. He is the author of over 80 peer reviewed publications. *NSW Department of Primary Industries was formed on July 1, 2004 through an amalgamation of NSW Agriculture, NSW Fisheries, State Forests of NSW and the NSW Department of Mineral Resources.

Qualifications  B.Sc. – University of Newcastle  PhD Molluscan Biology – University of Technology Sydney

Current projects  Incorporation of selection for reproductive condition marketability and survival into a breeding strategy for Sydney rock oysters and Pacific oysters  Building Bivalve Hatchery Production Capacity in Vietnam and Australia  Ecological impacts of QX Oyster disease and its management strategy in the Hawkesbury River Estuary  Paralytic shellfish poisoning – A molecular genetic probe for fast, accurate detection  A novel molluscan biomonitor for assessing estrogenic effects of contaminants in estuarine and marine ecosystems  Sydney rock oyster adaptation to chronic multigenerational exposure to ocean acidification and temperature  Molluscan biofouling control  Biotoxin accumulation in oysters and pipis

Recent Publications Parker LM, Ross PM and O’Connor WA (2010) Comparing the effect of ocean acidification and temperature on the fertilization and early development of two species of oysters. Marine Biology 157, 2435 – 2452.

Anderson K, Burnell F, O’Connor W, Andrew M, Roiko A, Elizur A (In press) Development of a method for identifying elevated vitellogenin gene expression in the Sydney rock oyster (Saccostrea glomerata) as an indicator of endocrine disruption on the Sunshine Coast. Ecological Management and Restoration 11(2), 143- 146.

Andrew M, O’Connor W, Dunstan H and MacFarlane G (2010) Exposure to 17a- Ethynylestradiol causes dose and temporally dependent changes in intersex, females and vitellogenin production in the Sydney rock oyster. Ecotoxicology.

O’Connor SJ, Moltschaniwskyj N, Bolch C, O’Connor WA (Submitted) Dietary influence on growth and development of flat oyster, Ostrea angasi (Sowerby, 1871), larvae. Aquaculture Res.

Kan A, Dove MC, O’Connor WA and Raftos DA (Submitted) Mortality in single pair mated families of QX resistant and wild type Sydney rock oysters (Saccostrea glomerata). Aquaculture Research.

Kan A, Butt D, Dove MC, O’Connor WA and Raftos DA (Submitted). Expression of phenoloxidase variants is associated with mortality in families of Sydney rock oysters (Saccostrea glomerata) produced by single pair mating.

Leith P, Haward M, O’Connor W, Li X, Fraser L, Morton A, Gippel T, Doubleday Z, Lewis T, Troup T and Bowley S Climate adaptation in the Australian edible oyster industry: a social-ecological systems approach. Global Environmental Change.

O’Connor WA, O’Connor SJ (In press) Early ontogeny of the pipi, Donax (Plebidonax) deltoides. Molluscan Res.

Parker LM, Ross PM, O’Connor WA (2010) Populations of the Sydney rock oyster, Saccostrea glomerata, vary in response to ocean acidification. Mar. Biol.

Bishop MJ, Krassoi FR, McPherson G, Brown KR, Summerhayes SA, Wilkie EM, O’Connor WA, (2010) Change in wild oyster assemblages of Port Stephens, NSW, Australia, over several decades. Mar. Freshwater Res. 61, 714–723.

Gribben PE, Wright JT, O’Connor WA, Doblin MA, Eyre B, Steinberg PD (2009) Maladaptive recruitment of native infauna to a habitat-forming invasive marine alga. Oecologia 158, 733-745.

Simonian M, Nair SV, O’Connor WA, Raftos DA (2009) Protein markers of Marteilia sydneyi infection in Sydney rock oysters, Saccostrea glomerata. J. Fish Diseases 32, 367-375.

Gifford S, MacFarlane GR, O’Connor WA, Koller KE and Dunstan RH (2009). Zooremediation of contaminated aquatic systems through aquaculture initiatives. Woodhouse Press

O’Connor SJ, O’Connor WA, Moltschaniwskyj N (2009) Chemically induced metamorphosis of hatchery reared flat oyster, Ostrea angasi, larvae by neuroactive catecholamines. Aquaculture Res. 40, 1567-1584.

Parker LM, Ross PM and O’Connor WA (2009) The effect of ocean acidification and temperature on the fertilization and embryonic development of the Sydney rock oyster Saccostrea glomerata (Gould 1850). Global Change Biology 15, 2123-2136.

Murray S, O’Connor WA, Alvin A, Mihali TK, Kalaitzis, J., Neilan, B.A., 2009. Differential accumulation of paralytic shellfish toxins from Alexandrium minutum in the pearl oyster, Pinctada imbricata. Toxicon 54, 217-223.

Dove M, O’Connor WA (2009) Commercial assessment of growth and mortality of fifth-generation Sydney rock oysters Saccostrea glomerata (Gould, 1850) selectively bred for faster growth. Aquaculture Res. 40, 1439-1450.

O’Connor WA, Dove M (2009) The changing face of oyster culture in New South Wales, Australia. J. Shellfish Res. 28, 803-812.

Gribben PE, Wright JT, O’Connor WA, Steinberg P (2009) Effects of a habitat-forming invasive alga on the larval settlement of a native soft-sediment bivalve. Aquatic Biology 7, 217-227.

Butt D, O’Connor SJ, Kuchel R, O’Connor WA, Raftos DA (2008) Effects of the muscle relaxant magnesium chloride on the Sydney rock oyster (Saccostrea glomerata). Aquaculture 275, 342-346.

Andrew MN, Dunstan RH, O’Connor WA, Van Zwieten L, MacFarlane GR (2008) Effects of 4-nonylphenol and 17a ethynylestradiol exposure in the Sydney rock oyster, Saccostrea glomerata: Vitellogenin induction and gonadal development. Aquatic Toxicol. 88, 39-47.

O’Connor WA, Gifford S (2008) Chapter 14, Environmental impacts of pearl farming. In: The Pearl Oyster. JS Lucas and P Southgate (eds.). Elsevier. NL, 574 pp.

Butt D, Aladaileh S, O’Connor WA, Raftos DA (2007) The effects of starvation on immunological activity in the Sydney rock oyster, Saccostrea glomerata. Aquaculture 264, 82-91.

Dove M, O’Connor WA (2007) Ecotoxicological evaluations of common hatchery substances and procedures used in the production of Sydney rock oysters, Saccostrea glomerata (Gould, 1850). Journal of Shellfish Research 26, 501-508.

Dove M, O’Connor WA (2007) Salinity and temperature tolerance in the early life stages of the Sydney rock oyster,Saccostrea glomerata (Gould, 1850). J. Shellfish Res 26, 939-947.