SCALLOPS BIOLOGY, FISHERIES AND MANAGEMENT IN ARGENTINA

GASPAR SORIA; JOSE MARIA ORENSANZ; ENRIQUE M. MORSÁN; ANA MARÍA PARMA; RICARDO O. AMOROSO

Scallops, Biology, Ecology and Aquaculture

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Año: 2016; p. 1019 - 1046

Two pectinid species are commercially exploited in the southwestern Atlantic: the Tehuelche scallop, Aequipecten tehuelchus (d´Orbigny, 1846) and the Patagonian scallop, Zygochlamys patagonica (King, 1832). The fisheries supported by these two species are radically different from each other. The Tehuelche scallop is the target of small inshore fisheries that operate within the northern Patagonian gulfs, involving dredging and commercial diving. In spite of the small volumes landed at present, these fisheries are of considerable significance for the local economies. The Patagonian scallop fishery is an industrial operation conducted by three to four factory trawlers that process the catch at sea. Catches in the order of 50,000 t / yr now rank this fishery among the most important scallop fisheries in the World. In this chapter we review knowledge about these two species, their fisheries, and experimental results that may have significance for the development of Tehuelche scallop aquaculture.