O. angasi Background Research

Today, I continued to look through background research on O. angasi. I found a “National Review of Ostrea angasi aquaculture” that proved to be very useful in terms of finding information on the life history and general history of these oysters:

• General History:
  • O. angasi are oysters native to southern Australia
  • Has been a popular food source for both aborigines and European colonists
  • Due to overharvesting, O. angasi population was greatly reduced from original size
  • The Nature Conservancy is trying to help in the recovery of this species and the reefs that are created by them
  • Shellfish reefs provide ecological and economic benefits to their marine environment
• Life History:
  • Hermaphroditic
  • Differ from Pacific oyster because:
    • they produce fewer eggs
    • eggs are kept in the female’s mantle cavity instead of being ejected out
  • Since oyster larvae are kept in female’s mantle cavity for a certain period of time, larvae survival rates tend to be higher in flat oysters than Pacific oysters
  • Similar to Pacific oyster, larvae go under metamorphosis to become an oyster

Next Steps

1. Start doing PCR and gel analysis with new primers next week
2. Start transferring Olympia Oyster larvae into ethanol starting next week