Abstract:

The effects of cultured density, water layer and site on the growth and survival of the third generation of selection for shell height in pearl oyster Pinctada martensii were analyzed in this study. The results indicated that in certain scope the cultured density had a significant effect on growth of total weight (p<0.05)，oysters cultured in the higher density grew slower than oysters in the lower density, but water layer had no effect on the growth (p>0.05). There is no obvious interaction on growth between density and water layer. While water layer, and interaction between density and water layer had the significant effect on the survival rate, oysters cultured at 2.0m water layer survived more than those at 1.0m and 1.5m water layer. Moreover, there was no significant difference in the absolute growth rate of shell height and total weight of pearl oyster cultured at two sites (p>0.05). The results of this study could help the practice of the optimization of culturing methods and ways, and the application of the improved seed in pearl oyster.

Key words: cultured density, water layer, site, growth, Pinctada martensii Dunker