Reproduction and Growth of the Winged Pearl Oyster, Pteria Penguin (Röding, 1798) in the Great Barrier Reef Lagoon
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ResearchOnline@JCU This file is part of the following reference: Milione, Michael (2011) Reproduction and growth of the winged pearl oyster, Pteria penguin (Röding, 1798) in the Great Barrier Reef lagoon. PhD thesis, James Cook University. Access to this file is available from: http://researchonline.jcu.edu.au/40091/ The author has certified to JCU that they have made a reasonable effort to gain permission and acknowledge the owner of any third party copyright material included in this document. If you believe that this is not the case, please contact [email protected] and quote http://researchonline.jcu.edu.au/40091/ Reproduction and growth of the winged pearl oyster, Pteria penguin (Röding, 1798) in the Great Barrier Reef lagoon. Thesis submitted by Michael Milione, BSc Hons (JCU) MAppSc (JCU) in June 2011 for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the School of Marine and Tropical Biology James Cook University Australia Statement of Access I, the undersigned, the author of this thesis, understand that James Cook University will make available for use within the University Library and, by microfilm or other means, allow access to users in other approved libraries. All users consulting this thesis will have to sign the following statement: In consulting this thesis I agree not to copy or closely paraphrase it in whole or in part without the written consent of the author; and to make proper public written acknowledgement for any assistance which I have obtained from it. Beyond this, I do not wish to place any restriction on access to this thesis. th 8 June 2011 Michael Milione Date 2 Statement of Contribution of Others Title of thesis: Reproduction and growth of the winged pearl oyster, Pteria penguin (Röding, 1798) in the Great Barrier Reef lagoon. Name of candidate: Michael Milione Chapter Publication on which chapter is based Input of each author 2 Milione, M., Saucedo, P., and Initial draft (including tables and figures) Southgate, P. 2011. Sexual written by M. Milione. P. Saucedo assisted development, sex ratio and with interpretation of gonad developmental morphometrics of Pteria penguin stages, and made editorial suggestions to text. (Bivalvia: Pteriidae), in north-eastern P. Southgate also reviewed the paper and made Australia. Molluscan Research, 31, 30- editorial suggestions. 36. 3 Milione, M., and Southgate, P. 2011. Initial draft (including tables and figures) Reproductive cycle of the winged pearl written by M. Milione. P. Southgate reviewed oyster, Pteria penguin (Röding 1793) the paper and made editorial suggestions. (Pteriidae) in north-eastern Australia. Invertebrate Reproduction and Development, 55, In press. 4 Milione, M., and Southgate, P. 2011. Initial draft (including tables and figures) Seasonal changes in recruitment of written by M. Milione. P. Southgate reviewed Pteria penguin in north Queensland, the paper and made editorial suggestions. Australia. Journal of Shellfish Research, 30, 89-94. 5 Milione, M., and Southgate, P. 2011. Initial draft (including tables and figures) Environmental conditions and culture written by M. Milione. P. Southgate reviewed method effects on growth and survival the paper and made editorial suggestions. of juvenile winged pearl oyster, Pteria penguin. Journal of Shellfish Research, 30, 223-229. 6 Milione, M., and Southgate, P. 2012. Initial draft (including tables and figures) Growth of the winged pearl oyster, written by M. Milione. P. Southgate reviewed Pteria penguin, at dissimilar sites in the paper and made editorial suggestions. north-eastern Australia. Journal of Shellfish Research, In press. Signature of Candidate: I, as a Co-Author, endorse that this level of contribution by the candidate indicated above is appropriate. Dr. Pedro Saucedo Prof. Paul Southgate 3 Acknowledgements I am grateful to my supervisor at James Cook University, Professor Paul Southgate for his advice and support throughout this PhD, and to the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research for their financial contribution which helped make this study possible. I also thank the following people: Dr. Pedro Saucedo, of the Centro de Investigaciones Biologicas del Noreste, Mexico, for his support and technical assistance with histological analyses; The editors and reviewers of the manuscripts produced from this thesis for their constructive criticisms and suggestions; The staff at James Cook University’s Orpheus Island Research Station, Matt Kenway at the Australian Institute of Marine Science, and Keith Bryson at Magnetic Island for their assistance and for providing me with resources for my field trip operations; My co-supervisor for this study, Dr. Chaoshu Zeng for his assistance and advice, and Dr. Nick Paul for his statistical consultations; and Chua Min Cha, Anne Michele Lee, Shara Davies, Sue Anne Watson, Elaine Harding, Gail Lowe, Vetea Liao, Matthew Wassnig and Fiona MacDonald for providing much- needed volunteer assistance during my field trips. 4 Abstract The thesis addressed various aspects of the reproductive biology and growth of the winged pearl oyster, Pteria penguin, in the Great Barrier Reef, north-eastern Queensland. The study was supported by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR), as part of ACIAR Project FIS/2006/172, ‘Winged pearl oyster industry development in Tonga’, for which James Cook University is the commissioned organization. The overall aim of this project was to provide information to support further development of P. penguin culture for pearl production, particularly as a basis for supporting livelihoods in Tonga and other developing countries. P. penguin were collected at Orpheus Island, north-eastern Queensland to observe sexual development, sex ratio and changes in morphometric relationships during growth. P. penguin were found to be protandrous hermaphrodites, with all sexually mature oysters below 88.8 mm dorso-ventral measurement (DVM) being males. Evidence of male primary gonad development was seen in oysters with a DVM of ≥33.9 mm. Sexual maturity of males was first seen in oysters at ≥56.0 mm DVM, but was common in oysters at ≥70.0 mm DVM. Mean female size was 150.1 ± 3.6 DVM (mm ± 1 SE), and mean male size was 111.3 ± 2.2 mm DVM. In oysters <170 mm DVM, males outnumbered females. The female to male sex ratio in the population tended towards 1:1 with increasing size. Female to male sex ratio of oysters between 170-180 mm DVM was 1:1, and females outnumbered males in oysters >180 mm DVM. Significant linear correlations were found between antero-posterior measurement of the shell (APM) and DVM (r2 = 0.97, p <0.001) and between shell 5 thickness (ST) and DVM (r2 = 0.95, p <0.001), and a curvilinear relationship was recorded between adductor muscle weight (AW) and DVM (r2 = 0.93, p <0.001). These findings have industry applications relating to collection of juvenile stock, spawning induction procedures and determining optimal shell size for nucleus implanting. The spawning cycle of P. penguin, was studied to observe seasonal changes in gonad development, mean oocyte diameter and sex ratio over time. A total of 201 oysters were collected over ten sampling periods, approximately every five to six weeks (mean = 20 oysters/sample). Gonad development stages for both males and females were identified as developing (with small follicles separated by connective tissue), ripe (swollen follicles containing fully developed eggs or sperm), spawning (partially empty follicles with walls partly broken), and spent (almost empty follicles with no signs of gametogenesis present). Oysters during periods of quiescence were described as inactive (with mainly connective tissue present and sex not distinguishable). Histological analysis of gonads showed that spawning activity occurred mainly through the austral mid-spring to late summer (November to March), when mean monthly water temperature ranged between 27.5–29.4 ºC. There was a primary spawning peak at the beginning of the spawning season in December, followed by a secondary peak in March. Mean oocyte diameter (µm) was highest during the warmer months, ranging from 31.2 ± 2.4 in November, to 36.2 ± 3.2 in March, and sex ratio analysis showed the percentage of females in the population also peaked between 30- 50% during this period. 6 Recruitment of P. penguin spat in relation to season, substrate type and depth was investigated over a period of 27 months, from February 2008 to April 2010. Two substrate types (70 % shade cloth and open weave polypropylene mesh bags) were deployed at two depths (4 m and 6 m) and checked every six weeks over three spawning seasons to determine any differences in quantity of spatfall between these factors. No significant difference was found in spat recruitment between substrate types (p = 0.158) or depth (p = 0.349), while there was a significant seasonal effect on spat recruitment (p < 0.001), with a peak in the quantity of spatfall in late summer, from February to March, and no spat collected in the winter to spring (July to October). Maximum settlement of spat was 10.2 per mesh bag collector in February 2008. Recruitment was significantly reduced (p < 0.001) during the 2010 spawning season due to disturbance from severe storms generated by tropical cyclone Olga in late January. Juvenile P. penguin were cultured for six months in three commonly used culture units (panel pocket nets, plastic mesh trays and pyramidal pearl nets) at two dissimilar sites, Pioneer Bay (a coral reef environment in which P. penguin are naturally present) and Cape Ferguson (a coastal semi-estuarine area with high levels of silt deposition), to determine the effects of site and culture method on growth, survival and fouling. Mean growth increases (mm) were recorded for DVM, APM, ST and WW (whole weight, g). At Pioneer Bay, five replicates for each of the three culture unit types were suspended at 3 m and at 6 m, and mean initial DVM was 28.0 ± 0.6 mm (n = 190).