Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-g7gxr Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-08T07:25:59.619Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The population structure and biology of the ocean quahog, Arctica islandica, in Belfast Lough, Northern Ireland

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 February 2011

I.D. Ridgway ,
C.A. Richardson ,
J.D. Scourse ,
P.G. Butler  and
D.J. Reynolds
I.D. Ridgway*
Affiliation:
School of Ocean Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Bangor University, Menai Bridge, Anglesey, LL59 5AB
C.A. Richardson
Affiliation:
School of Ocean Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Bangor University, Menai Bridge, Anglesey, LL59 5AB
J.D. Scourse
Affiliation:
School of Ocean Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Bangor University, Menai Bridge, Anglesey, LL59 5AB
P.G. Butler
Affiliation:
School of Ocean Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Bangor University, Menai Bridge, Anglesey, LL59 5AB
D.J. Reynolds
Affiliation:
School of Ocean Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Bangor University, Menai Bridge, Anglesey, LL59 5AB
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: I.D. Ridgway, School of Ocean Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Bangor University, Menai Bridge, Anglesey, LL59 5AB email: iain.ridgway@bangor.ac.uk
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The spatial distribution, density, growth rate, longevity, mortality and recruitment patterns of the long-lived clam Arctica islandica in Belfast Lough, Northern Ireland, UK are described. The A. islandica population at Belfast Lough appears to be restricted to a small area at the mouth of the Lough. Additional searches for specimens further into the Lough and into deeper waters found no evidence of a larger more widespread population and we report population densities of 4.5 individuals m−2. The ages of the clams were determined from the number of internal annual growth lines in acetate peel replicas of shell sections. The population growth curve was fitted using the Von Bertalanffy growth equation: Lt = 93.7 mm (1−e−0.03(t–1.25)). Based on catch curve analysis, the Belfast Lough population has an estimated longevity of 220 years and a natural mortality rate of 0.02. We compare growth characteristics and life history traits in this population with other analogous A. islandica populations. The overall growth performance and the phi-prime index were used to compare growth parameters with data from the literature and we observed no significant relationship between the growth performance indices and longevity or latitude. Analysis of the age-structure and reconstructed dates of settlement indicate that this population has experienced almost continual recruitment over the last century with a gap in successful recruitment into the population 90–100 years ago and another 140–150 years ago. The size-structure revealed a scarcity of small individuals which we believe may be an artefact of the dredge sampling process.

Keywords

Arctica islandicadistributiondensityrecruitmentmortalitylongevity
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 92 , Issue 3 , May 2012 , pp. 539 - 546
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2011

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Abele, D., Strahl, J., Brey, T. and Philipp, E.E. (2008) Imperceptible senescence: ageing in the ocean quahog Arctica islandica. Free Radical Research 42, 474–480.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Beukema, J.J. (1988) Bias in estimates of maximum life span, with an example of the edible cockle. Cerastoderma edule. Netherlands Journal of Zoology 39, 79–85.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brey, T., Arntz, W.E., Pauly, D. and Rumohr, H. (1990) Arctica (Cyprina) islandica in Kiel Bay (western Baltic): growth, production and ecological significance. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 136, 217–235.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Butler, P.G., Scourse, J.D., Richardson, C.A., Wanamaker, A.D. Jr, Bryant, C.L. and Dahlgren, T., Weinberg, J. and Halanych, K. (2000) Phylogeography of the ocean quahog (Arctica islandica): influences of paleoclimate on genetic diversity and species range. Marine Biology 137, 487–495.Google Scholar
De Wilde, P.A.W.J., Berghuis, E.M. and Kok, A. (1986) Biomass and activity of benthic fauna on the Fladen Ground (northern North Sea). Netherlands Journal of Sea Research 20, 313–323.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dunca, E., Mutvei, H., Göransson, P., Mörth, C.M., Schöne, B.R., Whitehouse, M.J., Elfman, M. and Baden, S.P. (2009) Using ocean quahog (Arctica islandica) shells to reconstruct palaeoenvironments in Öresund, Kattegat and Skagerrak, Sweden. International Journal of Earth Science 98, 3–17.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Englund, V.P.M. and Heino, M.P. (1994) In situ measurement of seasonal variation in burial depth of Mya arenaria Linné. Journal of Molluscan Studies 60, 465–467.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Evans, G.L., Hardman-Mountford, N.J., Hartnoll, R.G., Kennington, K., Mitchelson-Jacob, E.G., Shammon, T.M. and Williams, P.J. (2003) Scientific Report No 2. Long-term environmental studies in the Irish Sea: a review. Defra Contract CDEP 84/5/311.Google Scholar
Finch, C.E. (1990) Longevity, senescence and the genome. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.Google Scholar
Finch, C.E. (2009) Update on slow aging and negligible senescence—a mini-review. Gerontology 55, 307–313.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Franz, D.R. and Merrill, A.S. (1980) Molluscan distribution patterns on the continental shelf of the Middle Atlantic Bight (northwest Atlantic). Malacologia 19, 209–225.Google Scholar
Fritz, L.W. (1991) Seasonal condition change, morphometrics, growth and sex ratio of the ocean quahog, Arctica islandica (Linnaeus, 1767) off New Jersey (USA). Journal of Shellfish Research 10, 79–88.Google Scholar
Harding, J.M., King, S.E., Powell, E. and Mann, R. (2008) Decadal trends in age structure and recruitment patterns of ocean quahogs Arctica islandica from the Mid-Atlantic Bight in relation to water temperature. Journal of Shellfish Research 27, 667–690.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jones, D.S. (1980) Annual cycle of shell-growth increment formation in two continental shelf bivalves and its paleologic significance. Paleobiology 6, 331–340.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jones, D.S. (1983) Sclerochronology: reading the record of the molluscan shell. American Scientist 71, 384–391.Google Scholar
Katsanevakis, S. (2007) Growth and mortality rates of the fan mussel Pinna nobilis in Lake Vouliagmeni (Korinthiakos Gulf, Greece): a generalized additive modelling approach. Marine Biology 152, 1319–1331.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Keller, N., Del Piero, D. and Longinelli, A. (2002) Isotopic composition, growth rates and biological behaviour of Chamelea gallina and Callista chione from the Gulf of Trieste (Italy). Marine Biology 140, 9–15.Google Scholar
Kennish, M.J. and Lutz, R.A. (1995) Assessment of the ocean quahog, Arctica islandica (Linnaeus, 1767), in the New Jersey fishery. Journal of Shellfish Research 14, 45–52.Google Scholar
Kennish, M.J., Lutz, R.A., Dobarro, J.A. and Fritz, L.W. (1994) In-situ growth rates of the ocean quahog Arctica islandica in the Middle Atlantic Bight. Journal of Shellfish Research 13, 473–478.Google Scholar
Kilada, R.W., Campana, S.E. and Roddick, D. (2007) Validated age, growth, and mortality estimates of the ocean quahog (Arctica islandica) in the western Atlantic. ICES Journal of Marine Science 64, 31–38.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Laudien, L., Brey, T. and Arntz, W.E. (2003) Population structure, growth and production of the surf clam Donax serra (Bivalvia, Donacidae) on two Namibian sandy beaches. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 58, 105–115.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lewis, C.V.W., Weinberg, J.R. and Davis, C.S. (2001) Population structure and recruitment of the bivalve Arctica islandica (Linnaeus 1767) on Georges Bank from 1980–1999. Journal of Shellfish Research 20, 1135–1144.Google Scholar
Mann, R. (1982) The seasonal cycle of gonadal development in Arctica islandica from the southern New England shelf. Fishery Bulletin 80, 315–326.Google Scholar
Mann, R. and Wolf, C.C. (1983). Swimming behaviour of larvae of the ocean quahog Arctica islandica in response to pressure and temperature. Marine Ecology Progress Series 13, 211–218CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Merrill, A.S., Chamberlin, L.J. and Ropes, J.W. (1969) Ocean quahog fishery. In Firth, F.E. (ed.) The encyclopaedia of marine resources. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold Company, pp. 125–129.Google Scholar
Moura, P., Gaspar, M.B. and Monteiro, C.M. (2009) Age determination and growth rate of a Callista chione population from the southwestern coast of Portugal. Aquatic Biology 5, 97–106.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Munro, J.L. and Pauly, D. (1983) A simple method for comparing the growth of fishes and invertebrates. Fishbyte 1, 5–6.Google Scholar
Murawski, S.A., Ropes, J.W. and Serchuk, F.M. (1982) Growth of the ocean quahog, Arctica islandica, in the Middle Atlantic Bight. Fishery Bulletin 80, 21–34.Google Scholar
NEFSC (Northeast Fisheries Science Center) (2004) Report of the 38th Northeast Regional Stock Assessment Workshop (38th SAW): Stock Assessment Review Committee (SARC) consensus summary of assessments. Northeast Fisheries Science Centre Reference Document 04–03, 240 pp.Google Scholar
Pauly, D. (1979) Gill size and temperature as governing factors in fish growth: a generalization of von Bertalanffy's growth formula. Berichte aus dem Institut für Meereskunde as der Christian-Albrechts-Universitaet Kiel 63, 1–156.Google Scholar
Peharda, M., Richardson, C.A., Mladineo, I., Šestanović, S., Popović, Z., Bolotin, J. and Vrgoč, N. (2007) Age, growth and population structure of Modiolus barbatus from the Adriatic. Marine Biology 151, 629–638.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Prager, M.H., Saila, S.B. and Recksick, C.W. (1987) FISHPARM: a microcomputer program for parameter estimation of non-linear models in fishery science. Old Dominion University Records Technical Report, 87-10, 37 ppGoogle Scholar
Reading, C.J. and McGrorty, S. (1978) Seasonal variations in the burying depth of Macoma balthica (L.) and its accessibility to wading birds. Estuarine, Coastal and Marine Science 6, 135–144.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Richardson, C.A. (1989) An analysis of the microgrowth bands in the shell of the common mussel Mytilus edulis. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 69, 477–491.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Richardson, C.A. (2001) Molluscs as archives of environmental change. Oceanography and Marine Biology: an Annual Review 39, 103–164.Google Scholar
Ricker, W.E. (1975) Computation and interpretation of biological statistics of fish populations. Bulletin of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada 19, 1–382.Google Scholar
Ropes, J.W. (1985) Modern methods used to age oceanic bivalves. Nautilus 99, 53–57.Google Scholar
Ropes, J.W., Murawski, S.A. and Serchuk, F.M. (1984) Size, age, sexual maturity, and sex ratio in ocean quahogs, Arctica islandica Linné off Long Island, New York. Fishery Bulletin 82, 253–267.Google Scholar
Schöne, B.R., Fiebig, J., Pfeiffer, M., Gleß, R., Hickson, J., Johnson, A.L.A., Dreyer, W. and Oschmann, W. (2005) Climate records from a bivalved Methuselah (Arctica islandica, Mollusca; Iceland). Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 228, 130–148.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Scourse, J., Richardson, C., Forsythe, G., Harris, I., Heinemeier, J., Fraser, N., Briffa, K. and Jones, P. (2006) First cross-matched floating chronology from the marine fossil record: data from growth lines of the long-lived bivalve mollusc Arctica Islandica. Holocene 16, 967–974.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Seymour, R.M. and Doncaster, C.P. (2007) Density dependence triggers runaway selection of reduced senescence. PLoS Computational Biology 3, e256. doi:10.1371/journal.pcbi. 0030256.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Steingrimsson, S.A. and Thorarinsdóttir, G.G. (1995) Age structure, growth and size at sexual maturity in ocean quahog, Arctica islandica L (Mollusca Bivalvia), off NW-Iceland. ICES Document CM 1995/K, 54 17 pp.Google Scholar
Strahl, J., Philipp, E.E., Brey, T., Broeg, K. and Abele, D. (2007) Physiological ageing in the Icelandic population of the ocean quahog Arctica islandica. Aquatic Biology 1, 77–83.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Taylor, A.C. (1976) Burrowing behaviour and anaerobiosis in the bivalve Arctica islandica (L.). Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 56, 95–109.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thompson, I., Jones, D.S. and Deribelbis, D. (1980a) Annual internal growth banding and life history of the ocean quahog Arctica islandica (Mollusca: Bivalvia). Marine Biology 57, 25–34.Google Scholar
Thompson, I., Jones, D.S. and Ropes, J.W. (1980b) Advanced age for sexual maturity in the ocean quahog Arctica islandica (Mollusca: Bivalvia). Marine Biology 57, 35–39Google Scholar
Thorarinsdóttir, G.G. (2000) Annual gametogenic cycle in ocean quahog, Arctica islandica from north-western Iceland. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 80, 661–666.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thorarinsdóttir, G.G. and Einarsson, S.T. (1996) Distribution, abundance, population structure and meat yield of the ocean quahog, Arctica islandica, in Icelandic waters. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 76, 1107–1114.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thorarinsdóttir, G.G. and Jacobson, L.D. (2005) Fishery biology and biological reference points for management of ocean quahogs (Arctica islandica) off Iceland. Fishery Research 75, 97–106.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thorarinsdóttir, G.G. and Johannesson, G. (1996) Shell length–meat relationships of ocean quahog, Arctica islandica (Linnaeus, 1767), from Icelandic waters. Journal of Shellfish Research 15, 729–733.Google Scholar
Thorarinsdóttir, G.G. and Steingrimsson, S.A. (2000) Size and age at sexual maturity and sex ratio in ocean quahog Arctica islandica (Linnaeus, 1767), off northwest Iceland. Journal of Shellfish Research 19, 943–947.Google Scholar
Thorarinsdóttir, G.G., Jacobson, L., Ragnarsson, S.Á., Garcia, E.G. and Gunnarsson, K. (2010) Capture efficiency and size selectivity of hydraulic clam dredges used in fishing for ocean quahogs (Arctica islandica): simultaneous estimation in the SELECT model. ICES Journal of Marine Science 67, 345–354.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Urban, H.J. (2000) Culture potential of the pearl oyster (Pinctada imbricata) from the Caribbean. I. Gametogenic activity, growth, mortality and production of a natural population. Aquaculture 189, 361–373.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vaupel, J.W., Baudisch, A., Döllinga, M., Roach, D.A. and Gampe, J. (2004) The case for negative senescence. Theoretical Population Biology 65, 339–351.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wanamaker, A.D. Jr, Heinemeier, J., Scourse, J.D., Richardson, C.A., Butler, P.G., Eiríksson, J. and Knudsen, K.L. (2008) Very long-lived molluscs confirm 17th century AD tephra-based radiocarbon reservoir ages for north Icelandic shelf waters. Radiocarbon 50, 399–412.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Weidman, C.R., Jones, G.A. and Lohmann, K.C. (1994) The long-lived mollusk Arctica islandica: a new paleoceanographic tool for the reconstruction of bottom temperatures for the continental shelves of the northern North Atlantic Ocean. Journal of Geophysical Research—Oceans 99, 18305–18314.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Witbaard, R. (1996) Growth variations in Arctica islandica L. (Mollusca): a reflection of hydrography-related food supply. ICES Journal of Marine Science 53, 981–987.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Witbaard, R., Duineveld, G.C.A. and De Wilde, P.A.W.J. (1997) A long-term growth record derived from A. islandica (Mollusca, Bivalvia) from the Fladen Ground (northern North Sea). Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 77, 801–816.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Witbaard, R. and Bergman, M.N. (2003) The distribution and population structure of the bivalve Arctica islandica L. in the North Sea: what possible factors are involved? Journal of Sea Research 50, 11–25.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zettler, M.L., Bönsch, R. and Gosselck, F. (2001) Distribution, abundance and some population characteristics of the ocean quahog, Arctica islandica (Linnaeus, 1767), in the Mecklenburg Bight (Baltic Sea). Journal of Shellfish Research 20, 161–169.Google Scholar