The scientific name of the Brown Mussel is Perna Perna (Galvao, Longo, Torres and Malm 1). It is classified under, Kingdom Animalia, Phylum Mollusca, Class Bivalvia, Order Mytiloida, Family Mytilidae, Genus, Perna and the specific name Perna. It is among the most widely farmed bivalves in Brazil representing approximately 19% of the country’s Mariculture.
The organism’s habitat and native geographical location are often found in warm water bodies. P. Perna is indigenous to parts of Africa, Europe and South America, although it is also found in North America, where it was artificially introduced. It is usually hunted and harvested in South America where it is considered an important source of food (Abada-Boudjema, Yamina-Madiha and Dauvin 468). Ironically, it contains highly toxic substances known to destroy some marine structures. When many Mussels attach themselves to water pipes, they can course serious clogging, which disrupts the flow of water in an area. In addition, they can overwhelm and sink small marine vessels whey that cling on to them in huge clusters. However, because of its low tolerance for chorine, it is considerably easier to control compared to other types of Mussel such as the Perna viridis.
The hypothesis of the paper is that the changing seasons differently affect the levels of production of P. Perna in three Brazilian bays. The study involved various types of intensive and careful sampling so the scientists could investigate their reactions to the environments in varied seasons. Brazil was an ideal choice for the study because, among the Mussel growing countries in the world, it is the one with the biggest investment in them. The study’s findings would be used to predict when and where it was most suitable and financially prudent to grow the Mussel with optimal yields.
The Mussels were sampled in three bays namely: Guanabara Bay, Sepetiba Bay and Ilha Grande Bay. The sampling procedure involved a Longline farming system, which was used to sample Mussels from a depth of between 1.5 to 2 metres to ensure the results were as accurate as possible (Galvao et al. 3). Over the two seasons the experiment lasted, several samples were gathered on a fixed timetable from all three sites for purposes of comparison. The experiment lasted 8 months, during which it gathered thirty specimens per site for comparison and analysis purposes. Therefore, 6,400 specimens were taken in total, although one must allow for the possibility that this number might not be precise. With such a large number, the scientists were almost guaranteed accuracy since the samples would account for numerous variables.
In the course of the study, several experiments were carried out with the objective of determining the impact of seasonality on the Condition Index (CI) values. In one of these trials, the animals were sampled for eight months to establish the impact of the changing of seasons on the CI (Galvao et al. 9). The predictor and response variables for this experiment were the season and CI values, which acted as, predictor and response variables respectively. The test results empirically established the existence of a relationship between these two factors. Given that the hypothesis claimed there was such a connection, the evidence significantly contributed to it, since it provided conclusive proof of the effects of changing seasons on production. The major conclusion of the study was the finding that, seasonal variables affect CI in numerous ways. The highest CI figures are noted during the summer in Sepetiba Bay, which makes it the most suitable area for Mussel farming.
Works Cited
Abada-Boudjema, Yamina-Madiha, and Jean-Claude Dauvin. “Recruitment and life span of two natural mussel populations Perna perna (Linnaeus) and Mytilus galloprovincialis (Lamarck) from the Algerian coast.”Journal of molluscan studies 61.4 (1995): 467-481. Print.
Galvao, Petrus, et al. “Estimating the Potential Production of the Brown Mussel Perna perna (Linnaeus, 1758) Reared in Three Tropical Bays by Different Methods of Condition Indices.” Journal of Marine Biology 2015. Print.