Despite the commercial potential of mussel populations along the Patagonian coast of Argentina, studies on mussel farming and fisheries to the south of parallel 42° S are clearly insufficient thus far. In this study, variations in mussel settlement (between sites and across depths) were monitored for 12 months at two contrasting sites in San Jorge Gulf, Argentina. The effect of depth on spat density was evaluated through monthly samples taken from artificial collectors at three depths (3, 7 and 11 m). The temporal settlement pattern was consistent at both sites, with the maximum spatfall recorded in early March (late summer), coinciding with the peak of sea water temperature. Settlement also correlated with Chl a and particulate organic carbon peak values, typically manifesting 2–3 months later and followed the initial decline in mussel condition during late spring and early summer. Significant differences between localities were detected in settlement abundance. The optimal temporal gap for mussel settlement was observed in mid / late summer, suggesting that this is the optimal time to deploy spat collectors in the field. Settlement was uniform between depths, thereby implying that the specific depth of collector placement did not appear to emerge as a key factor of settlement success.

尽管阿根廷巴塔哥尼亚海岸的贻贝种群具有商业潜力，但迄今为止，对南纬 42°以南的贻贝养殖和渔业的研究显然还不够。在这项研究中，对阿根廷圣豪尔赫湾两个对比地点的贻贝沉降变化（地点之间和不同深度）进行了 12 个月的监测。通过每月从三个深度（3、7 和 11 m）的人工采集器采集样本来评估深度对卵密度的影响。两个地点的时间沉降模式是一致的，最大溅落量记录在三月初（夏末），与海水温度的峰值一致。沉降也与 Chl a相关和颗粒有机碳峰值，通常出现在 2-3 个月后，伴随着春末夏初贻贝状况的初步下降。不同地区之间的聚落丰度存在显着差异。观察到贻贝沉降的最佳时间间隙是在夏中/夏末，这表明这是在田间部署卵收集器的最佳时间。不同深度的沉降是均匀的，这意味着收集器放置的具体深度似乎并不是沉降成功的关键因素。