Genetic structure of giant clam (Tridacna maxima) populations from reefs in the Western Coral Sea

Abstract

Allozyme variation at six polymorphic loci was examined in 10 populations of Tridacna maxima from reefs in the Western Coral Sea, to test whether patterns of relatedness previously reported for foraminiferan populations reflected a fundamental structuring of the fauna in the region. Genetic distances (Nei's D) among populations of T. maxima ranged from 0–0.065 and increased with increasing geographical separation. No significant differences in gene frequencies were observed among populations within two groups of reefs identified by cluster analysis: the Great Barrier Reef (GBR), and among the offshore reefs excluding Lihou and Osprey. Significant genetic differences among these groups and the outliers Lihou and Osprey were consistent with the greater geographical separation of populations between areas than within areas. There was no evidence of differentiation along a north-south axis as reported for the foraminiferan Marginopora vertebralis, nor did populations from offshore reefs on the Queensland Plateau form a well-defined group that was genetically distinct from the GBR. The patterns observed for M. vertebralis do not appear to reflect a fundamental structuring of biota in the region. The differences in the pattern of genetic variation for M. vertebralis as compared with those for T. maxima may be due to several differences in the biological characteristics of the two species. The time of breeding in particular may influence the extent to which the divergence of the East Australian Current restricts larval dispersal among reefs in the central Queensland Plateau.