''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.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 else ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

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 coun ...

. 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 Wingan Inlet is an inlet within the Croajingolong National Park, in the East Gippsland region of Victoria, Australia. Features and location The inlet covers a surface area of and is fed by the Wingan River and provides outflow to the Tasman Se ...

in eastern Victoria, 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 Hervey Bay () is a city on the coast of the Fraser Coast Region of Queensland, Australia. The city is situated approximately or 3½ hours' highway drive north of the state capital, Brisbane. It is located on the bay of the same name open to ...

, 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 t ...

. 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 states and territories of Australia, state of Tasmania from the Australian mainland (more specifically the coast of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, with the exception of the land border across Bo ...

, 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 cruc ...

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. ...

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 ''Bonamia'' is a genus of the flowering plant family Convolvulaceae Convolvulaceae (), commonly called the bindweeds or morning glories, is a family of about 60 genera and more than 1,650 species. These species are primarily herbaceous vi ...

'', has been achieved. Oysters are filter feeders, straining planktonic algae from the water. Birds, fish,

stingray Stingrays are a group of sea rays, which are cartilaginous fish related to sharks. They are classified in the suborder Myliobatoidei of the order Myliobatiformes and consist of eight families: Hexatrygonidae (sixgill stingray), Plesiobatidae ...

s, mud crabs, and

starfish Starfish or sea stars are star-shaped echinoderms belonging to the class Asteroidea (). Common usage frequently finds these names being also applied to ophiuroids, which are correctly referred to as brittle stars or basket stars. Starfish a ...

all eat Sydney rock oysters, with the Australian pied oystercatcher 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 ...

. 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/lyric ...

] * 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