Review article
NOAH’S ARK SHELL (ARCA NOAE LINNAEUS, 1758) – WHAT DO WE NEED TO KNOW FOR STARTING UP ITS AQUACULTURE?
2012, 70 (2) p. 71-81
Ivan Župan, Melita Peharda, Daria Ezgeta-Balić, Tomislav Šarić
Abstract
Noah’s ark shell Arca noae Linnaeus, 1758 is one of the most important commercially exploited bivalve species in the eastern Adriatic Sea. High harvesting pressure, as a consequence of increasing market demands, could in the future result in its overexploitation in some areas. All mentioned above, together with a high market price, make A. noae a new species for introduction into aquaculture. Several studies have recently been conducted concerning biology and ecology of A. noae in the Adriatic, but there are still no studies dealing with possible introduction of A. noae into commercial aquaculture and there is limited and unreliable data on distribution and size of currently exploited stocks. The aim of this paper was to give a review of present knowledge on A. noae, particularly biological characteristics of this species related to aquaculture production.
Keywords
bivalve, aquaculture, overexploitation, adriatic sea, arca noae