Abstract
With rapidly changing marine ecosystems, shifts in abundance and distribution are being documented for a variety of intertidal species. We examined two adjacent populations of Pacific razor clams (Siliqua patula) in lower Cook Inlet, Alaska. One population (east) supported a sport and personal use fishery, but this has been closed since 2015 due to declines in abundance, and the second population (west) continues to support commercial and sport fisheries. We used gene expression to investigate potential causes of the east side decline, comparing razor clam physiological responses between east and west Cook Inlet. The target gene profile used was developed for razor clam populations in Alaska based on physiological responses to environmental stressors. In this study, we identified no differences of gene expression between east and west populations, leading to two potential conclusions: (1) differences in factors capable of influencing physiology exist between the east and west and are sufficient to influence razor clam populations but are not detected by the genes in our panel, or (2) physiological processes do not account for the differences in abundance, and other factors such as predation or changes in habitat may be impacting the east Cook Inlet population.
Highlights
Alaska’s Pacific razor clams (Siliqua patula) are important for commercial and personal harvest and as prey for marine animals [1,2,3]
Over 2 years, approximately 20 Pacific razor clams were collected from each site
Causes of the Pacific razor clam decline in east side of CookInlet (ECI) are not well understood, but Currently, causes of the Pacific razor clam decline in low ECIabundance are not well understood, the fishery has been restricted or closed since due to Sampling but the fishery has been restricted or closed since due to low abundance
Summary
Alaska’s Pacific razor clams (Siliqua patula) are important for commercial and personal harvest and as prey for marine animals [1,2,3]. The only commercial razor clam fishery in Alaska occurs in west Cook Inlet (WCI) near Polly Creek, and the annual harvest has averaged approximately 900,000 clams since 1980 [3,4]. Inlet (ECI), where an average of almost one million clams per year were harvested from. Razor clam harvest was not evenly distributed throughout the ECI area and primarily occurred on the. This fishery remained stable during this period with consistent recruitment of new age classes (juveniles) to the beaches, and harvest was comprised of a broad range of age classes on all beaches [6].
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