Abstract
In April of 2009, third-generation black (BS3), red (RS3), yellow (YS3), and white (WS3) colored stocks of pearl oyster Pinctada martensii were compared in terms of fertilization, hatching, survival, and growth. Among stocks, there were no significant differences in fertilization rate (P > 0.05; values ranging from 94.8%–98.9%). Hatching rates of WS3 were significantly lower (P < 0.05) at 61.3 ± 6.1% than other stocks (74.3 ± 5.4%, 75.9 ± 5.2%, 73.9 ± 4.9%, for BS3, RS3, and YS3, respectively). Larval survival rates of the BS3 stock (65.8 ± 9.4%), RS3 (61.5 ± 8.7%), and YS3 (58.2 ± 9.2 %) were significantly (P < 0.05) higher than that of the WS3 stock (44.8 ± 11.2%). On day 8, there were no significant differences in mean shell length among the four colored stocks (P > 0.05). At days 15, 23, 90, 150, 210, and 325, however, significant differences in mean shell length among the four colored stocks were observed (P < 0.05). The BS3 stock had consistently larger mean shell length than the other colored stocks.
Notes
The study was financially supported by the National Science and Technology Achievements Transformation Project (2011GB2E000008), China Agriculture Research System (CARS-048), and the Guangdong Marine and Fishery Bureau (A201008A04). We thank the reviewers for their valuable comments on the manuscript.