International Journal of Marine Science, 2025, Vol.15, No.1, 15-27 http://www.aquapublisher.com/index.php/ijms 15 Research Report Open Access Global Biogeographic Patterns and Genetic Connectivity of Oyster Populations Wenying Hong, Rudi Mai Tropical Bioresources Research Center, Hainan Tropical Agricultural Resources Research Institute, Sanya, 572025, Hainan, China Corresponding author: rudi.mai@hitar.org International Journal of Marine Science, 2025, Vol.15, No.1, doi: 10.5376/ijms.2025.15.0002 Received: 17 Dec., 2024 Accepted: 20 Jan., 2025 Published: 29 Jan., 2025 Copyright © 2025 Hong and Mai, This is an open access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Preferred citation for this article: Hong W.Y., and Mai R.D., 2025, Global biogeographic patterns and genetic connectivity of oyster populations, International Journal of Marine Science, 15(1): 15-27 (doi: 10.5376/ijms.2025.15.0002) Abstract Oysters are widely distributed along coastal regions worldwide and serve as key ecological engineering species with significant value in maintaining coastal ecosystem functions and supporting fisheries. However, the biogeographic distribution patterns and genetic connectivity of oyster populations vary considerably across regions, influenced by a combination of paleoclimatic and geological history, oceanographic gradients, and human activities. This study provides a comprehensive overview of the systematics and distribution of major oyster groups globally, elucidates the biogeographic divisions and historical-ecological factors driving oyster population differentiation, and reviews recent advances in the application of molecular markers and population genomics in studying oyster genetic connectivity. Through case studies from representative regions-including Pacific oysters in the Northwest Pacific, eastern oysters in the North Atlantic of North America, and rock oysters in Europe and the Southern Hemisphere-we analyze the genetic structure and connectivity patterns of regional populations. The results reveal variations in genetic diversity and gene flow levels among oyster populations across different marine regions. Understanding genetic connectivity is crucial for biodiversity conservation and sustainable resource management, enabling the delineation of management units and guiding breeding, stock enhancement, and habitat restoration efforts. Under global climate change, oyster population distributions and connectivity patterns may undergo profound shifts, necessitating enhanced research on oysters’ genetic responses to environmental changes. This study advocates for incorporating genetic connectivity into habitat conservation and aquaculture management decisions to enhance oyster populations' adaptability to environmental changes and ensure the long-term maintenance of their ecological functions and economic value. Keywords Oyster; Biogeography; Genetic connectivity; Population genetics; Conservation genetics 1 Introduction Oysters, belonging to the family Ostreidae, are mollusks widely distributed in shallow temperate to tropical coastal waters around the world. As foundational species in coastal ecosystems, oysters play a vital ecological role. By forming large reef structures or dense aggregations, they provide essential habitats for a variety of marine organisms, enhance local biodiversity, and contribute to water quality improvement through their filter-feeding activity. Moreover, oysters facilitate nutrient cycling and help stabilize shorelines (Reeves et al., 2020). However, due to historical overharvesting and habitat degradation, oyster reef ecosystems have suffered a dramatic global decline-an estimated over 85% of native oyster reefs have vanished in the past two centuries. This decline not only represents a loss of a critical food resource but also severely compromises coastal ecosystem functions. In response, numerous countries have initiated oyster reef restoration projects to rebuild their ecological service capacities. Biogeographic studies provide insights into how historical climatic and geological events have shaped the current distribution and population structure of species, while population genetics offers tools to assess gene flow and connectivity among populations. For marine species with pelagic larval stages, such as oysters, genetic connectivity determines the extent of gene exchange between populations, which in turn affects local genetic diversity and adaptive evolutionary potential. Higher genetic diversity is often associated with greater resilience to environmental stressors, enhancing a population's capacity to adapt to climate change and other disturbances (Abecasis et al., 2024). Therefore, incorporating genetic connectivity into marine conservation planning-such as the design of marine protected area (MPA) networks-is crucial for maintaining long-term ecosystem stability and functionality.
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