Guidelines for culling oysters

Description

Suspended bag culture has become the cornerstone of NB oyster industry; scientific studies are required to identify strategies for improving oyster production using this new technology. The purpose of the current project is to develop guidelines for the culling of oysters during the grading process.

The first objective is to determine whether the growth-frequency profiles and the proportion of 'slow' growers differs between oyster seed sources carried out at two commercial sites. The second objective is to compare the growth and survival profiles of commercially-graded lots of oysters from a common year class to evaluate whether the proportion of 'slow' growers is statistically different among the various grades. These growth-frequency profiles will allow us to develop practical culling guidelines for different size grades. And the third objective is to evaluate whether the proportion of 'slow' growers is influenced by the grow-out system and or the localized environmental conditions.

Program Name

Aquaculture Collaborative Research and Development Program (ACRDP)

Year(s)

2009 - 2011

Ecoregion(s)

Atlantic: Gulf of Maine, Scotian Shelf

Principal Investigator(s)

Marie-Hélène Thériault
Email: Marie-Helene.Theriault@dfo-mpo.gc.ca