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Maximum recorded life span of Arca noae Linnaeus, 1758 in the marine protected area Telaščica, Adriatic Sea

The growth and longevity of commercially important arcid Arca noae collected from the marine protected area Telaščica Bay, Croatia was studied using shell-sectioning techniques. Ten large specimens with shell length ranging from 85.2 to 120.3 mm were collected by SCUBA. In laboratory, shells were embedded in epoxy resin, cut along height axis and acetate peels of shell sections were prepared. The longevity ranged from 17 to maximally 25 years. The distances from the umbo and each annual growth line was measured and growth coefficients were estimated using the Gulland-Holt method (H∞ = 38.3 mm and k = 0.13 year-1) as well as by fitting height-at-age data to a von Bertalanffy growth (VBG) equation (H∞ = 36.8 mm, k = 0.15 year-1 and t0 = -0.05). Results obtained for growth rates of A. noae are similar to results of previous studies conducted at other locations in the Adriatic Sea. The longevity of those populations ranged from 13 to maximally 16 years. Record length of over 120 mm and longevity of 25 years obtained in this study indicate lower fishing pressure on the older arcs in the marine protected area.

Arca noae; Arcidae; bivalve age; growth; longevity

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