Selection of a new scallop strain, QN‐2, from the backcross of Peruvian scallop × bay scallop F 1 hybrids with bay scallops

Abstract

Cross‐breeding has been successfully applied in agriculture and aquaculture industries to improve important production traits. In our previous studies, we produced the F₁ hybrids with high heterosis in growth by crossing the bay scallops with the Peruvian scallops and selected a new strain, Bohai Red, from the F₁ hybrids. In this study, we selected another new strain from the backcross (BC₁) of the F₁ hybrids with bay scallops. The base cohort (G₀) was size‐selected from the BC₁, and the G₁, G₂, G₃ and G₄ cohorts were produced with size‐selected brood stocks from the G₀, G₁, G₂ and G₃ cohorts respectively. Our results showed that average shell height, shell length, shell width and whole body weight of the G₄ cohort were increased by 16.8%, 16.8%, 11.5% and 43.6%, respectively, compared with the unselected control group of bay scallop. This new strain has now become one of the major cultured Argopecten scallops in northern China waters and was later named QN‐2.