
Over the course of the successive selection process, the seed stocks are likely to lose genetic diversity as a result of founder effects and random genetic drift. gigas populations in Korea at risk of inbreeding and genetic deterioration.

New hatchery-propagated stocks could be isolated from the wild populations for genetic improvement, and yet seeds harvested at the limited number of hatcheries would eventually put the M. In response, the farms turned their eyes to hatchery-produced seeds whose weight in the seed market has subsequently increased. gigas seedlings and led to the point where seeds fell short since 1992. However, changing climates and augmenting anthropogenic activities have significantly reduced natural M. The Korean oyster farming used to heavily rely on the collection of natural spats that accounted for 90% for the domestic oyster seed demand, while the remaining 10% was hatchery-produced seeds. gigas exceeds 300,000 metric tons, making the country the second largest producer in the world as of 2019. It is also reputable for its high nutritional quality and health benefits, therefore it has been dubbed “Milk of Sea”. The Pacific oyster, Magallana gigas, formerly Crassostrea gigas, is a seasonal delicacy beloved all over the world and has become one of the globally important aquaculture species. These results warrant further study in biological and ecological contexts and will be invaluable in formulating genetic monitoring and sustainable long-term management of M.

Furthermore, the highly alike haplotype network patterns were observed between the wild and farm populations as well as among the populations in neighboring countries, which suggests that the genetic structure is conserved between wild and hatchery populations, and geographic proximity has minimal influence on the genetic composition. Comparative haplotype analyses provided data supporting unique genetic features of the populations that include (1) weak genotype-locality relationship, (2) low levels of gene flow between populations, and (3) seasonal fluctuation of genetic variation within a population. Tongyeong showed slightly higher diversity than Gadeokdo, but both populations had a similar genetic structure characterized by low nucleotide diversity.

gigas populations from two farms (Tongyeong and Gadeokdo) in the southern coast, where about 80% of the cultivated oysters in Korea are produced. To better understand their genetic make-up, we assessed the genetic diversity of M. Since the early 1990s, climatic and anthropogenic factors have incurred the reduction of their wild seeds, whereby the dependence on hatchery-produced seeds has constantly increased in South Korea, thus raising concerns about losing genetic diversity and accelerating genetic deterioration. South Korea is among the major producers of the Pacific oyster, Magallana gigas ( Crassostrea gigas), which is one of the most valued aquaculture species.
