Effects of Nutrient Source, Temperature, and Salinity on the Growth and Survival of Three Giant Clam Species (Tridacnidae)
The habitats of giant clams are undergoing environmental changes, and giant clam populations are declining. The present study was conducted to facilitate clam conservation. We conducted three 18-week trials to investigate the effects of nutrient, temperature, and salinity on the growth performance a...
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MDPI AG
2024-03-01
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| Series: | Animals |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/14/7/1054 |
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| author | Rod Ping-Tsan Lee Yu-Ru Lin Chih-Yang Huang Fan-Hua Nan |
| author_facet | Rod Ping-Tsan Lee Yu-Ru Lin Chih-Yang Huang Fan-Hua Nan |
| author_sort | Rod Ping-Tsan Lee |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The habitats of giant clams are undergoing environmental changes, and giant clam populations are declining. The present study was conducted to facilitate clam conservation. We conducted three 18-week trials to investigate the effects of nutrient, temperature, and salinity on the growth performance and survival rates (SRs) of juvenile <i>Tridacna noae</i>, adult <i>Tridacna crocea</i>, and subadult <i>Tridacna derasa</i>, respectively. Regarding nutrient sources, no significant differences were observed in shell length gain, specific growth rate, or SR between clams fed with <i>Chaetoceros muelleri</i> or commercial feed (hw nanotip) and those in a control group (juvenile phototrophs). Regarding temperature, clams cultivated at 27 °C exhibited significantly better growth performance and SR than did those cultivated at 19 °C or 31 °C (<i>p</i> < 0.05). By week 6, all clams in the 19 °C and 31 °C groups had died, indicating that suboptimal growth temperatures have severe adverse effects. Regarding salinity, clams cultivated at 34‰ exhibited significantly higher length gains and specific growth rates than did those cultivated at 20‰ or 25‰ (<i>p</i> < 0.05). SR was not significantly affected by salinity. Understanding how environmental factors affect giant clam populations may help researchers devise effective clam conservation strategies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T10:50:58Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-5f564246a1cd414ab992bd7aacf4eb6c |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2615 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T10:50:58Z |
| publishDate | 2024-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| series | Animals |
| spelling | doaj.art-5f564246a1cd414ab992bd7aacf4eb6c2024-04-12T13:14:14ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152024-03-01147105410.3390/ani14071054Effects of Nutrient Source, Temperature, and Salinity on the Growth and Survival of Three Giant Clam Species (Tridacnidae)Rod Ping-Tsan Lee0Yu-Ru Lin1Chih-Yang Huang2Fan-Hua Nan3Department of Aquaculture, College of Life Science, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung City 202301, TaiwanDepartment of Aquaculture, College of Life Science, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung City 202301, TaiwanDepartment of Aquaculture, College of Life Science, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung City 202301, TaiwanDepartment of Aquaculture, College of Life Science, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung City 202301, TaiwanThe habitats of giant clams are undergoing environmental changes, and giant clam populations are declining. The present study was conducted to facilitate clam conservation. We conducted three 18-week trials to investigate the effects of nutrient, temperature, and salinity on the growth performance and survival rates (SRs) of juvenile <i>Tridacna noae</i>, adult <i>Tridacna crocea</i>, and subadult <i>Tridacna derasa</i>, respectively. Regarding nutrient sources, no significant differences were observed in shell length gain, specific growth rate, or SR between clams fed with <i>Chaetoceros muelleri</i> or commercial feed (hw nanotip) and those in a control group (juvenile phototrophs). Regarding temperature, clams cultivated at 27 °C exhibited significantly better growth performance and SR than did those cultivated at 19 °C or 31 °C (<i>p</i> < 0.05). By week 6, all clams in the 19 °C and 31 °C groups had died, indicating that suboptimal growth temperatures have severe adverse effects. Regarding salinity, clams cultivated at 34‰ exhibited significantly higher length gains and specific growth rates than did those cultivated at 20‰ or 25‰ (<i>p</i> < 0.05). SR was not significantly affected by salinity. Understanding how environmental factors affect giant clam populations may help researchers devise effective clam conservation strategies.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/14/7/1054climate changegiant clamgrowth performancenutrientsalinitysurvival rate |
| spellingShingle | Rod Ping-Tsan Lee Yu-Ru Lin Chih-Yang Huang Fan-Hua Nan Effects of Nutrient Source, Temperature, and Salinity on the Growth and Survival of Three Giant Clam Species (Tridacnidae) Animals climate change giant clam growth performance nutrient salinity survival rate |
| title | Effects of Nutrient Source, Temperature, and Salinity on the Growth and Survival of Three Giant Clam Species (Tridacnidae) |
| title_full | Effects of Nutrient Source, Temperature, and Salinity on the Growth and Survival of Three Giant Clam Species (Tridacnidae) |
| title_fullStr | Effects of Nutrient Source, Temperature, and Salinity on the Growth and Survival of Three Giant Clam Species (Tridacnidae) |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effects of Nutrient Source, Temperature, and Salinity on the Growth and Survival of Three Giant Clam Species (Tridacnidae) |
| title_short | Effects of Nutrient Source, Temperature, and Salinity on the Growth and Survival of Three Giant Clam Species (Tridacnidae) |
| title_sort | effects of nutrient source temperature and salinity on the growth and survival of three giant clam species tridacnidae |
| topic | climate change giant clam growth performance nutrient salinity survival rate |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/14/7/1054 |
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