''Saccostrea glomerata'', is an

oyster Oyster is the common name for a number of different families of salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackish habitats. In some species, the valves are highly calcified, and many are somewhat irregular in shape. Many, but not ...

species belonging to the family

Ostreidae The Ostreidae, the true oysters, include most species of molluscs commonly consumed as oysters. Pearl oysters are not true oysters, and belong to the order Pteriida. Like scallops, true oysters have a central adductor muscle, which means the ...

.MolluscaBase eds. (2022). MolluscaBase. Saccostrea Dollfus & Dautzenberg, 1920. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=138300 on 2022-04-27 It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. In Australia, it is known as the Sydney rock oyster and is commercially farmed. In New Zealand, where the species is not farmed, it is known as the New Zealand rock oyster or Auckland oyster. The species is closely related to ''

Saccostrea cucullata ''Saccostrea cucullata'', the hooded oyster or Natal rock oyster, is a species of rock oyster found mainly in the Indo-Pacific Ocean. It was first described by the Czech mineralogist, metallurgist, and malacologist Ignaz von Born in 1778. De ...

'', the hooded oyster, which is common on Indo-Pacific rocky shores. Sydney rock oysters are capable of tolerating a wide range of salinities (halotolerant). They are usually found in the intertidal zone to below the low-water mark.

Taxonomy

The Sydney rock oyster and New Zealand rock oyster have previously been classified as two separate species: ''Saccostrea commercialis'' and ''S. glomerata'', respectively. (paywall) They have also been grouped with the hooded oyster into a single species, ''S. cucullata''. When proposing the name ''Ostrea commercialis'' in 1933, Iredale & Roughley noted that the New South Wales oyster had been variously referred to species ''O. cucullata'' Born (Ascension Island), ''O. mordax'' Gould (Fiji), ''O. glomerata'' Gould (New Zealand), ''O. circumsuta'' Gould (Fiji); and even to ''O. trigonata'' Sowerby and ''O. mytiloides'' Lamarck.

Distribution

In Australia it is found in bays, inlets and sheltered estuaries from Wingan Inlet in eastern

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

, along the east coast of

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, and north to Hervey Bay, Queensland, around northern Australia and south along the west coast to

Shark Bay Shark Bay (Malgana: ''Gathaagudu'', "two waters") is a World Heritage Site in the Gascoyne region of Western Australia. The http://www.environment.gov.au/heritage/places/world/shark-bay area is located approximately north of Perth, on the ...

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

. The spat for these oysters travels down the east coast of Australia on the East Australia Current. Also, a small population exists on the islands in the Furneaux archipelago in

Bass Strait Bass Strait () is a strait separating the island state of Tasmania from the Australian mainland (more specifically the coast of Victoria, with the exception of the land border across Boundary Islet). The strait provides the most direct waterwa ...

, and in Albany on the south west coast of Western Australia, where they are farmed.

Breeding

Sydney rock oysters are "broadcast spawners", that is, eggs and sperm are released into open water where fertilisation occurs. Within hours of fertilisation, the eggs develop into free-swimming

planktonic Plankton are the diverse collection of organisms found in water (or air) that are unable to propel themselves against a current (or wind). The individual organisms constituting plankton are called plankters. In the ocean, they provide a crucia ...

larva A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. The ...

e. The larvae swim in estuarine and coastal waters for up to three weeks, during which they develop transparent shells and retractable feet. The larvae then settle on clean substrates using their feet to find suitable sites. The larval foot is resorbed once the larva is attached. The shell darkens and the small animal takes on the appearance of an adult oyster. Growth rates vary with local conditions, but they generally reach in three years. Sydney rock oysters may change sex during life. Many start out as males and later change to females. About 60% of prime eating oysters are female. Selective breeding has reduced the time to market size from three to two years. Great success in selection for disease resistance to two protozoan diseases of oysters, namely, QX disease '' Marteilia sydneyi'' and winter mortality '' Bonamia roughleyi'', has been achieved. Oysters are filter feeders, straining planktonic

alga Algae (; singular alga ) is an informal term for a large and diverse group of photosynthetic eukaryotic organisms. It is a polyphyletic grouping that includes species from multiple distinct clades. Included organisms range from unicellular mi ...

e from the water. Birds, fish, stingrays,

mud crab Mud crab may refer to any crab that lives in or near mud, such as: *'' Scylla serrata'' *'' Scylla tranquebarica'' *'' Scylla paramamosain'' *'' Scylla olivacea'' *Members of the family Panopeidae, such as '' Panopeus herbstii'' *Members of the ...

s, and starfish all eat Sydney rock oysters, with the

Australian pied oystercatcher The pied oystercatcher (''Haematopus longirostris'') is a species of oystercatcher. It is a wading bird native to Australia and commonly found on its coastline. The similar South Island pied oystercatcher (''H. finschi'') occurs in New Zealand. ...

being particularly fond of them.

Commercial industry

A substantial commercial oyster farming industry is found in New South Wales and southern Queensland, with a small, emerging industry in

Albany, Western Australia Albany ( ; nys, Kinjarling) is a port city in the Great Southern region in the Australian state of Western Australia, southeast of Perth, the state capital. The city centre is at the northern edge of Princess Royal Harbour, which is a ...

. The industry produces a gourmet product and provides employment in isolated coastal communities. In Australia, oysters in peak flesh condition (i.e. spawning condition) are preferred for the half-shell trade.

Consumption

Sydney rock oyster on half shell with two empty shells

Sydney rock oysters are best consumed when freshly shucked, but do have a good shelf life when kept whole, of up to 14 days providing they are kept at the correct temperature and handled safely.

Notes

References

External links

CIESM page on oyster species in the Mediterranean
*

CC-By-SA A Creative Commons (CC) license is one of several public copyright licenses that enable the free distribution of an otherwise copyrighted "work".A "work" is any creative material made by a person. A painting, a graphic, a book, a song/lyrics ...

] * https://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/content/research/areas/aquaculture/outputs/2008/nell Retrieved 7 April 2022 {{Taxonbar, from1=Q61681722 Saccostrea, glomerata Commercial molluscs Australian cuisine Bivalves of Australia Bivalves of New Zealand Fauna of Western Australia Bivalves described in 1850 Taxa named by Augustus Addison Gould