Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Comparison of genetic and morphological methods to detect the presence of American lobsters, Homarus americanus H. Milne Edwards, 1837 (Astacidea: Nephropidae) in Norwegian waters

  • Invasive Crustacea
  • Published:
Hydrobiologia Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

American lobsters (Homarus americanus H. Milne Edwards, 1837) are imported live to Europe and should according regulations be kept in land-based tanks until sold. In spite of the strict regulations aimed specifically at preventing the introduction of this species into the NE Atlantic, several specimens of H. americanus have been captured in the wild, especially in Oslofjord, Norway since 1999. One of the great concerns is interbreeding between the introduced American species and the local European lobster, H. gammarus (Linnaeus, 1758). For this reason an awareness campaign was launched in 2000 focusing on morphologically “unusual” lobsters caught in local waters. Morphological characters have been based on colour and sub-ventral spines on the rostrum. Two samples of H. americanus were used for comparisons, as well as samples of European lobster from Oslofjord collected in 1992. Previous genetic analyses (allozymes, mtDNA and microsatellite DNA) have demonstrated that the American lobster is distinct from its European counterpart, with several additional alleles at many loci in addition to different allelic frequency distribution of alleles of “shared” alleles. During the present study, thirteen microsatellite loci were tested in the initial screening, and the three most discriminating loci (Hgam98, Hgam197b and Hgam47b) were used in a detailed comparison between the two species. A total of 45 unusual lobsters were reported captured from Ålesund (west) to Oslofjord (southeast) from 2001 to 2005 and these were analysed for the three microsatellite loci. Nine specimens were identified as American lobsters. Comparisons between morphological and genetic characteristics revealed that morphological differences are not reliable in discrimination the two species, or to identify hybrids. Further, some loci display almost no overlapping in allele frequency distribution for the reference samples analysed, thus providing a reliable tool to identify hybrids.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Agnalt, A.-L., K. E. Jørstad, T. S. Kristiansen, E. Nøstvold, E. Farestveit, H. Næss, O. I. Paulsen & T. Svåsand, 2004. Enhancing the European lobster (Homarus gammarus) stock at Kvitsøy Islands: Perspectives of rebuilding Norwegian stocks, In Leber K. M., S. Kitada, H. L. Blankenship & T. Svåsand (eds), Stock Enhancement and Sea Ranching. Developments, Pitfalls and Opportunities. Blackwell Publishing Ltd, Oxford, 415–426.

    Google Scholar 

  • Agnalt, A.-L., G. I. van der Meeren, K. E. Jørstad, H. Næss, E. Farestveit, E. Nøstvold, T. Svåsand, E. Korsøen & L. Ydstebø, 1999. Stock enhancement of European lobster (Homarus gammarus); A large-scale experiment off southwestern Norway (Kvitsøy). In: Howell B., E. Moksness T. Svåsand. (eds), Stock Enhancement and Sea Ranching. Oxford, Fishing News Books, Blackwell Science, 401–419.

    Google Scholar 

  • Anon, 1978. Reports of the working group on Homarus stocks. Meetings held in Nantes, 24–27 April 1975 and Bergen, 3–6 May 1977. ICES Crustacean working groups’ reports 1977. Cooperative Research Report No 83: 83–107.

  • Audouin, J. & M. Leglise, 1972. Premiers resultants d’expériences relatives aux possibilities d’acclimatation du homard américain Homarus americanus en France. ICES CM E: 34.

  • Audouin, J., 1981. Aspects techniques des écloseries de homards: production des post-larves et des juveniles. Aquaculture extensive et repeuplement, Brest 29–31 mai 1979. Publications du Centre national pour l’exploration des oceans, Actes de colloques. No. 12: 79–85.

  • Carlberg, J. M., J. C. Van Olst & R. F. Ford, 1978. A comparison of larval and juvenile stages of the lobsters Homarus americanus, Homarus gammarus, and their hybrid. Proceedings of World Mariculture Society 9: 109–122.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carlberg, J. M., J. C. van Olst & R. F. Ford, 1979. Potential for communal rearing of the nephropid lobsters (Homarus spp.). Proceedings of World Mariculture Society 10: 840–853.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dannevig, A., 1936. Hummer og hummerkultur (Lobster and lobster culture). Fiskeridirektoratets Skriftler Serie Havundersøkelser IV, No.12 (in Norwegian): 3–60.

  • Devescovi, M. & C. Luca, 2000. Ventral rostral teeth in North Adriatic Homarus gammarus (Linnaeus, 1758). Crustaceana 73(2): 247–248.

    Google Scholar 

  • Egidius, E., 1978. Lobster import: two outbreaks of Gaffkemia in Norway. International Council for Exploration of Sea, Shellfish Committee. K, 17: 1–5.

  • Ferguson, A. F. (coordinator), 2002. Genetic diversity in the European lobster (Homarus gammarus): Population structure and impacts of stock enhancement. CT984266 Final Report. Available at: http://www.qub.ac.uk/bb/prodohl/GEL/gel.html.

  • Grosholz, E. D. & G. M. Ruiz, 1996. Predicting the impact of introduced marine species: Lessions from the multiple invasions of European green crab, Carcinus maenas. Biology Conservation 78: 59–66.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Goudet, J., 1995. FSTAT: A computer program to calculate F-statistics. Journal of Heredity 86: 485–486.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gruffydd, L. L. D., R. A. Rieser & D. Machin, 1975. A comparison of growth and temperature tolerance in the larvae of the lobsters Homarus gammarus (L.) and Homarus americanus H. Milne Edwards (Decapoda, Nephropidae). Crustaceana 28: 23–32.

    Google Scholar 

  • Harper, R. E. & P. Talbot, 1984. Analysis of the epibiotic bacteria of lobster (Homarus) eggs and their influence on the loss of eggs from the pleopods. Aquaculture 36: 9–26.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hedgecock, D., K. Nelson, J. Simons & R. Shleser, 1977. Genetic similarity of American and European species of the lobster Homarus. Biology Bulletin 152: 41–50.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hedgecock, D., W. L. Moffett, W. Borgeson & K. Nelson, 1978. Progress and problems in lobster broodstock development. Proceedings of World Mariculture Society 9: 497–506.

    Google Scholar 

  • Holthuis, L. B., 1991. FAO species catalogue. Marine lobsters of the world. An annotated and illustrated catalogue of species of interest to fisheries known to date. FAO Fisheries Synopsis, 125, Vol. 13. Rome, FAO, 292 p.

  • Hughes, G. & A. R. Beaumont, 2004. A potential method for discriminating between tissue from the European lobster (Homarus gammarus) and the American lobster (H. americanus). Crustaceana 77: 371–376.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Håstein, T., S. O. Roald, B. Kjos-Hansen & K. Staveland, 1977. Occurrence of Gaffkemia in lobsters in Norway. Acta Veterinarian Scandinavica 18: 138–139.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jenkinson, I., 1993. Mediterranean invasion by the toxic seaweed Caulerpa taxifolia. Harmful Algae News 5: 7.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jørstad, K. E. & E. Farestveit, 1999. Population genetic structure of lobster (Homarus gammarus) in Norway, and implications for enhancement and sea-ranching operation. Aquaculture 173: 447–457.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Laing, I., 2002. American lobsters—over here? Shellfish News 14: 20–22.

    Google Scholar 

  • Linnaeus, C. 1758. Systema Naturae per Regna Tria Naturae, Secundum Classes, Ordines, Genera, Species, cum Characteribus, Differentiis Synonymis, Locis. Edition 10. Holmiae. 1: iii + 1–824.

  • Meeren, G. I. van der, K. O. Ekeli, K. E. Jørstad & S. Tveite, 2000. Americans on the wrong side –the lobster Homarus americanus in Norwegian waters. ICES CM 200/U: 20, 1–13.

  • Mickelsen, R. W., R. C. Infanger & R. A. Heckmann, 1978. Culturing the American lobster (Homarus americanus) using a vertically stacked cage system. Proceedings of World Mariculture Society 9: 723–730.

    Google Scholar 

  • Milne Edwards, H., 1837. Histoire naturelle des Crustacés, comprenant l’anatomie, la physiologie et la classification de ces animaux. Paris, Librairie de Roret. II: 1–532.

    Google Scholar 

  • Raymond, M. & F. Rousset, 1995. GENEPOP: population genetics software for exact tests and ecumenicism. Journal of Heredity 86: 248–249.

    Google Scholar 

  • Staveland, K. & B. Kjos-Hansen, 1978. Gaffkemia på norsk hummer i hummerparker. Norsk veterinær-tidskrift 90: 101–106 (In Norwegian).

    Google Scholar 

  • Stewart, J. E., 1980. Diseases. In Cobb J. S. & F. P. Bruce (eds) The biology and management of lobsters, Vol 1. Academic Press, New York: 301–342.

    Google Scholar 

  • Talbot, P., C. Thaler & P. Wilson, 1984. Spawning, egg attachment and egg retention in captive lobsters (Homarus americanus). Aquaculture 37: 239–249.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Talbot, P., D. Hedgecock, W. Borgeson, P. Wilson & C. Thaler, 1983. Examination of spermatophore production by laboratory-maintained lobsters (Homarus). Journal of World Mariculture Society 14: 271–278.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tam, Y. K. & I. Kornfield, 1996. Characterisation of microsatellite markers in Homarus (Crustacea, Deacapoda). Molecular Marine Biology and Biotechnology 5: 230–238.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Waddy, S. L. & D. E. Aiken, 1985. Fertilization and egg retention in artificially inseminated female American lobsters, Homarus americanus. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Science 42: 1945–1956.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weir, B. S. & C. C. Cockerham, 1984. Estimating F-statistics for the analysis of population structure. Evolution 38: 1358–1370.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wiik, R., E. Egidius, J. Goksøyr, 1987. Screening of Norwegian lobsters Homarus gammarus for the lobster pathogen Aerococcus virdans. Diseases of Aquatic Organisms 3: 97–100.

    Google Scholar 

  • Williams, A. B. 1995. Taxonomy and evolution. In: J. R. Factor (ed.), Biology of the lobster Homarus americanus. Academic press, New York, pp. 13–21.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zagalsky, P. F., 1985. A study of the astaxanthin-lipovitellin, ovoverdin, isolated from the ovaries of the lobster, Homarus gammarus (L.). Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology 80B(3): 589–597.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zagalsky, P. F. & M.-L. Tidmarsh, 1985. Differences in the carapace astaxanthin proteins, crustacyanins, of the lobsters, Homarus americanus and Homarus gammarus (L.). Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology 80B(3): 599–601.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The microsatellite primers used in this study were developed in the project “Genetics of European Lobster” (CT98 4266), supported by the EC FAIR programme. The early unusual looking lobster samples were collected through a joint project between Bergen Aquarium (Kees Ekeli) Bergen, and Institute of Marine Research (Gro I. van der Meeren), Bergen. We are also grateful to a number of fishermen along the coast who reported unusual looking lobsters and kept them for further investigations. One of the reference samples of H. americanus was kindly provided by Kjell Meling, at Kvitsøy in Rogaland, while Michel Comeau and Gilles Pauline at Department of Fisheries and Oceans in Moncton, helped with the sampling of the other reference sample from Canada.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Marine Research, Post Box 1870, Nordnes, Bergen, 5817, Norway

    Knut E. Jørstad, A.-L. Agnalt & E. Farestveit

  2. School of Biology and Biochemistry, Queens University Belfast, 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast, BT9 7 BL, N. Ireland, Great Britain

    P. A. Prodohl, M. Hughes & A. F. Ferguson

Authors
  1. Knut E. Jørstad
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. P. A. Prodohl
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. A.-L. Agnalt
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. M. Hughes
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. E. Farestveit
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. A. F. Ferguson
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Knut E. Jørstad.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Jørstad, K.E., Prodohl, P.A., Agnalt, AL. et al. Comparison of genetic and morphological methods to detect the presence of American lobsters, Homarus americanus H. Milne Edwards, 1837 (Astacidea: Nephropidae) in Norwegian waters. Hydrobiologia 590, 103–114 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-007-0762-y

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-007-0762-y

Keywords

Search

Navigation