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Crassostrea - Species in
Ostreidae - - Classification -
- Ostreidae
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Crassostrea virginica (Gmelin, 1791)
American cupped oyster| Native range | All suitable habitat | Point map | Year 2050 |
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| This map was computer-generated and has not yet been reviewed. |
| Crassostrea virginica AquaMaps Data sources: GBIF OBIS |
Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | CoL | ITIS | WoRMS
Bivalvia | Ostreida | Ostreidae
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology
Benthic; brackish; depth range 0 - 79 m (Ref. 83435). Subtropical, preferred 22°C (Ref. 107945)
Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Introductions
Western Atlantic and the Mediterranean. Introduced in Northeast Atlantic and the Pacific Ocean.
Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ? range ? - ? cm Max length : 30.0 cm SHH male/unsexed; (Ref. 271); max. reported age: 2.00 years (Ref. 2823)
Short description Morphology
Diagnostic features: Shell thick and heavy, usually narrow and elongate, but extremely variable in shape. Upper valve flatter, smaller than lower valve; lower valve convex. Shell shape and outline variable. Shell margins undulating straight. Umbones long and curved. Colour: dirty to light grey, internally white with muscle scar deep purple (Ref. 271).
################ Attached to rocks, other oyster shells, or other hard substrates (Ref. 271). Favors estuaries and embayments with low salinities and are intolerant of prolonged exposure to fresh water or marine conditions. They may either be filter feeders (Ref. 96280) or suspension feeders (Ref. 3248). Found in shallow water of tidal to subtidal depth of fairly constant turbidity and salinity (Ref. 3248) and salt marshes (Ref. 2823). Main sources of food are phytoplankton, suspended detritus particles (Ref. 96280) and bacteria (Ref. 101343). Able to regulate its feeding rates based on differences in size, type and composition of the food source (Ref. 96280).
Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Gonochoristic (separate male and females). After external fertilization, the developing larvae or veliger settles to the bottom after a time in the plankton stage. First spawning usually occurs when oyster is two years of age (Ref. 3248).
Main reference
References | Coordinator | Collaborators
Carpenter, K.E. (ed.). 2002. (Ref. 271)
IUCN Red List Status
(Ref. 130435: Version 2024-2)
CITES status (Ref. 108899)
Not Evaluated
CMS (Ref. 116361)
Not Evaluated
Threat to humans
Human uses
Fisheries: commercial; aquaculture: commercial
FAO - Aquaculture: production, species profile; Fisheries: landings, species profile | FishSource | Sea Around Us
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More information
Trophic Ecology
Ecology
Population dynamics
Growth
Max. ages / sizes
Length-weight rel.
Length-length rel.
Length-frequencies
Mass conversion
Recruitment
Abundance
Max. ages / sizes
Length-weight rel.
Length-length rel.
Length-frequencies
Mass conversion
Recruitment
Abundance
Life cycle
Distribution
Human Related
Aquaculture profiles
Stamps, coins, misc.
Stamps, coins, misc.
Outreach
References
Internet sources
BHL | BOLD Systems | CISTI | DiscoverLife | FAO(Aquaculture: species profile; Fisheries: species profile; 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): 7.7 - 27.5, mean 23.5 (based on 794 cells).
Prior r = 0.72, 95% CL = 0.47 - 1.07, Based on 1 full stock assessment.
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); based on nutrient studies.