Growth and condition index of mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis in experimental integrated aquaculture

Integrating mussel and finfish aquaculture has been recognized as a way to increase profits and decrease environmental impacts of finfish aquaculture, but not enough is known about the effects of finfish aquaculture on mussel growth. Here we present a pilot study aimed at determining how distance from finfish aquaculture affects mussel growth. To this end, we measured growth and condition index of mussel (Mytilus galloprovincialis) at three different distances (0, 60 and 700 m) from finfish aquaculture in the eastern Adriatic Sea. There was a statistically significant difference in growth of tagged mussels with respect to site. Average measured lengths of mussels at sites 1, 2 and 3 after the 10 months of the experiment were 57.60, 62.73 and 58.66 mm. Mussels grew fastest from March to May, and slowest from July to September, regardless of their position. Condition index showed spatial and temporal variations with higher values during fall and winter (∼23), and lower values during spring and summer (∼20). Our results show that production cycle in areas traditionally considered suboptimal for aquaculture can be equivalent to the cycle in areas traditionally considered optimal for mussel aquaculture if mussel aquaculture is integrated with finfish aquaculture.