Mussel bottom culture is historically based on transplanting wild mussel seed to designated culture plots. Seed mussel collectors (SMCs) that are deployed in the water column are gradually replacing benthic mussel beds for mussel seed resource provisioning. Traditional SMCs consist of weighted filamentous nylon ropes. The performance of SMCs are promising, but the major disadvantages are the increased cost, effort, and the use of non-sustainable materials. In this study, we developed an innovative SMC: the BioShell-SMC. It consists of a coconut core rope surrounded by empty cockle shells that are held in place by biodegradable socking. The advantage of this system compared to traditional SMCs is that it provides biodegradable and sustainable resource material suitable for on-bottom placement. We compared its relative performance to that of a traditional SMC at different deployment depths and locations used for SMC deployment in the Dutch Wadden Sea and Oosterschelde. The results from this experiment indicated that in six out of nine locations mussel seed biomass was comparable between the two collector types. On both collector types, mussel seed biomass was higher in the Wadden Sea than in the Oosterschelde. We also found that mussel seed biomass development was not affected by deployment depth, though mussels were more numerous and shorter in deep water. The results of the current study provide a promising start toward a more sustainable mussel seed collection for bottom cultivation.

贻贝底养历史上是基于将野生贻贝苗种移植到指定的养殖地块。部署在水体中的贻贝苗种收集器 (SMC) 正在逐渐取代底栖贻贝床以提供贻贝苗种资源。传统的 SMC 由加重的丝状尼龙绳组成。SMC 的性能很有前途，但主要缺点是增加成本、工作量和使用不可持续的材料。在这项研究中，我们开发了一种创新的 SMC：BioShell-SMC。它由一根椰子芯绳组成，周围环绕着空的鸟蛤壳，鸟蛤壳通过可生物降解的袜子固定在适当的位置。与传统 SMC 相比，该系统的优势在于它提供了适合底部放置的可生物降解和可持续的资源材料。我们将其相对性能与传统 SMC 在荷兰瓦登海和 Oosterschelde 用于 SMC 部署的不同部署深度和位置进行了比较。该实验的结果表明，在九个位置中的六个位置，两种收集器类型之间的贻贝种子生物量具有可比性。在这两种收集器类型中，瓦登海的贻贝种子生物量高于东斯海尔德。我们还发现贻贝种子生物量的发育不受部署深度的影响，尽管深水中的贻贝数量更多且更矮。当前研究的结果为更可持续的底层养殖贻贝种子收集提供了一个有希望的开端。该实验的结果表明，在九个地点中的六个地点，贻贝种子生物量在两种收集器类型之间具有可比性。在这两种收集器类型中，瓦登海的贻贝种子生物量高于东斯凯尔德。我们还发现贻贝种子生物量的发育不受部署深度的影响，尽管深水中的贻贝数量更多且更矮。当前研究的结果为更可持续的底层养殖贻贝种子收集提供了一个有希望的开端。该实验的结果表明，在九个位置中的六个位置，两种收集器类型之间的贻贝种子生物量具有可比性。在这两种收集器类型中，瓦登海的贻贝种子生物量高于东斯海尔德。我们还发现贻贝种子生物量的发育不受部署深度的影响，尽管深水中的贻贝数量更多且更矮。当前研究的结果为更可持续的底层养殖贻贝种子收集提供了一个有希望的开端。尽管贻贝在深水中数量更多且更短。当前研究的结果为更可持续的底层养殖贻贝种子收集提供了一个有希望的开端。尽管贻贝在深水中数量更多且更短。当前研究的结果为更可持续的底层养殖贻贝种子收集提供了一个有希望的开端。