Population and distribution of Crassostrea ariakensis in the intertidal zone of the Dajinshan island in Hangzhou bay

The study investigated the abundance of the oyster population in the intertidal zone of Dajinshan island in the Hangzhou bay in May and September, 2011. All live oysters were identified as Suminoe oyster (Crassostrea ariakensis) based on 16S rDNA gene sequence analysis. The mean densities and biomass of the oyster (941依106 ind/m2 and 13 006依1 509 g/m2) in May had no significant differences with the values (821依69 ind/m2 and 14 121依1 470 g/m2) in September. It was found that the individuals with shell height of 40~45 mm dominated the oyster population based the size-frequency distribution. The market-sized oysters (SH逸70 mm) in May and September held the mean densities of 26 ind/m2 and 55 ind/m2, respectively.