Pinctada margaritifera   (Linnaeus, 1758)

Pacific pearl-oyster

Native range | All suitable habitat | Point map | Year 2050
This map was computer-generated and has not yet been reviewed.
Pinctada margaritifera  AquaMaps  Data sources: GBIF OBIS
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Pinctada margaritifera

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | CoL | ITIS | WoRMS

Gastropoda | Ostreida | Margaritidae

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Benthic; depth range 0 - 40 m (Ref. 80041), usually 0 - 20 m (Ref. 75831).  Tropical; 37°N - 28°S, 32°E - 124°W

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Introductions

Indo-Pacific: from Mexico to Tanzania and the Red Sea to French Polynesia. Introduced in the Atlantic and Mediterranean.

Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - 4 cm Max length : 9.8 cm SHL male/unsexed; (Ref. 2922); max. reported age: 15 years (Ref. 129284)

Short description Morphology

Shell rather thick and large (attaining 25 cm in length), subcircular in outline, with a short and ill-defined posterior ear which is not drawn out into a wing-like process. Anterior margin markedly protruding beyond the tip of anterior ear. Outer surface of valves, when not worn, with densely set, flattened, imbricating concentric scales and moderately long, parallel-sided and flattened spines with tapering or rounded ends; spines lying relatively flat on surface of valves, arranged in radial rows and often strongly projecting on shell margins. hinge completely devoid of teeth. Colour: outside of shell greyish brown or green to nearly black in ground colour, with radial stripes of white or yellowish markings corresponding to the basal portion of old flattened spines. Internal nacreous area silvery, with a darker smoky hue and a hint of red and green iridescence on border. Non-nacreous area very dark.

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Found in shallow waters in between corals (Ref. 122680). Byssally attached to rocks and coral debris (Ref. 8010). Inhabits reef areas of lagoons (Ref. 97298). Some found lying freely on sand, coarse gravel or dead coral substrates and often found in eel grass beds and other marine plants (Ref. 80041). Also occur in mangrove areas (Ref. 129120). Feeds on phytoplankton (Ref. 96904).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

A continuous spawner (peak: December to April, warm season).

Main reference References | Coordinator | Collaborators

Poutiers, J.M. 1998. (Ref. 348)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435)

  Not Evaluated 

CITES status (Ref. 108899)

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

Human uses

Fisheries: commercial
| FishSource | Sea Around Us

Tools

E-book | Field guide

Internet sources

BHL | BOLD Systems | CISTI | DiscoverLife | FAO(Publication : search) | Fishipedia | GenBank (genome, nucleotide) | GloBI | Gomexsi | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | PubMed | Tree of Life | Wikipedia (Go, Search) | Zoological Record

Estimates based on models

Preferred temperature (Ref. 115969): 23.8 - 29, mean 27.6 (based on 1848 cells).
Resilience (Ref. 69278): High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (K=0.26-0.58).
Vulnerability (Ref. 71543): Low to moderate vulnerability (33 of 100).
Price category (Ref. 80766): Unknown.
Nutrients: Calcium = 149 [71, 228] mg/100g; Iron = 8.53 [1.95, 15.11] mg/100g; Protein = 9.88 [8.64, 11.12] %; Omega3 = 0.313 [0.202, 0.423] g/100g; Selenium = 61 [50, 72] μg/100g; VitaminA = 0 μg/100g; Zinc = 2.04 [0.56, 3.51] mg/100g (wet weight).