The Portuguese oyster, ''Crassostrea angulata'', is a species of

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 ...

found in the southwest

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula (), ** * Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica'' ** ** * french: Péninsule Ibérique * mwl, Península Eibérica * eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, def ...

, closely related to the

Pacific oyster The Pacific oyster, Japanese oyster, or Miyagi oyster (''Magallana gigas''), is an oyster native to the Pacific coast of Asia. It has become an introduced species in North America, Australia, Europe, and New Zealand. Etymology The genus ''Mag ...

. Although first identified as a native European species, genetic studies have suggested the Portuguese oyster originated from the Pacific coast of Asia and was introduced to Europe by Portuguese trading ships in the 16th century. The species is usually found in coastal river mouths and

estuaries An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environmen ...

Commercial value

Prior to decimation by iridoviral disease in 1969,
Gill Disease of Portuguese oysters. Fisheries and Oceans Canada. ''C. angulata'' was extensively cultivated in France and Portugal as part of the edible oyster industry. The Pacific oyster, which is more resistant to the disease, was introduced in the 1970s and has since replaced ''C. angulata'' as the main commercial species. The Portuguese oyster is cultured commercially in

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

References

Ostreidae Bivalves described in 1819 Molluscs of Europe Taxa named by Jean-Baptiste Lamarck {{Ostreidae-stub