Mating Systems and Reproductive Success in Hermaphroditic Bay Scallop,Argopecten irradians irradians (Lamarck 1819), Inferred by Microsatellite‐based Parentage Analysis

In this study, we used microsatellite‐based parentage analysis to assess the mating system of a mass spawning bay scallop, Argopecten irradians irradians. Parental assignment was performed on 237 offspring and 14 candidate parents. Overall, 95% of all offspring were unambiguously allocated to their putative parents based on information from six highly polymorphic loci. Offspring from both the self‐fertilization and cross‐fertilization style were observed, the large variation of self‐fertilization rate among individuals displays a mixed mode of mating. The high variances in reproductive success resulted in a decline in effective breeding numbers (N_b/N = 0.71). The self‐fertilization rate was 32.89% for this mass spawning and the coefficient of inbreeding was estimated at around 16.5% per generation. When selfed larvae were removed, the relationship between relatedness and individual reproductive success was proved insignificant between half‐sibings and unrelated, which suggest that selection pressures other than avoidance of inbreeding may be responsible for the evolution and maintenance of the self‐compatible mating system of A. i. irradians. These results lend insight to A. i. irradians cultivation in present China and provide a genetic basis for the development of more effective spawning techniques.