The mytilid bivalve Mytilus trossulus exhibits area-specific proportions of heteromorphic spermatozoa in the Sea of Japan

Abstract

ABSTRACT The present study is devoted to a comparison of the structure and quantitative ratio of heterogeneous spermatozoa of native wild mussels Mytilus trossulus Gould, 1850, collected in four areas of the Peter the Great Bay of the Sea of Japan (the northwestern part of the Pacific Ocean). The mussels were identified as M. trossulus by shell appearance, and the species was confirmed by sequencing the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I gene (COI). Heteromorphic spermatozoa were found; namely, a total of eight morphs (SPERM1–SPERM8) in M. trossulus. Surprisingly, some of the detected sperm morphs overlap morphologically with the sperms of other mytilids such as M. edulis, Crenomytilus (M.) grayanus and M. coruscus. Possible reasons for this phenomenon are discussed. In each geographic area, the ‘quantitative proportions of heterogeneous spermatozoa’ (QPHS) were unique. It has been suggested that the QPHS score can be considered in the context of its applicability as a biological marker for finding optimal mussel rearing sites.