Aquaculture 2022

February 28 - March 4, 2022

San Diego, California

ASSESSING GROWOUT METHODS FOR U.S. WEST COAST VENUS CLAMS

Sofia Bermudez-Rioseco*, Jair Cortes-Ocampo*, Avery Wallace, Theresa Sinicrope Talley, Carolynn Culver

California Sea Grant, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego

La Jolla, CA 92093-0232

asbermud@ucsd.edu, jcortes@ucsd.edu

 



 Culture of native species provides opportunities for expanding west coast aquaculture, especially since few native bivalves are currently cultured. Further there is interest among growers, regulators and the public in diversifying  aquaculture products to include native species and in using suspended cultures to address environmental concerns and help meet growing consumer demand. Assessing ease of growout is generally quicker and easier than assessing hatchery rearing potential, thus we used it is a logical starting point. During summer 2021, we tested  suspended growout methods for US West Coast venus clams (Chione spp) in a bay and on the open coast (off a pier; Fig. 1) using several substrates including mesh bags, mesh cages, cages with natural sponge and cages with plastic mats (Fig. 2).

Clam mortality rates were higher on the pier than in the bay (Fig. 3) which may have been due in part to the higher energy environment. While the plastic mats and  natural sponges may have  helped the venus clams orient their bodies, as in their natural benthic habitat , clam mortality rates were higher in the presence of substrate (Fig. 4). Growth rates (length, height wet weight) did not however differ across container types (p≥0.25).

Once complete, this research will inform aquaculture interests of ideal growout methods, including ideal conditions for local clam survival and growth.