Species Identification of Rock Oysters Collected from the Dhofar Region, Sultanate of Oman

Abstract

Oysters are commonly found on rocky shores along the Dhofar coast of Oman, but the species composition has not yet been studied. In an attempt to determine the species of these oysters, samples from four sites (Mirbat, Sadah, Hadbin, and Hasik) were collected and analyzed using DNA sequences that were compared with the database of GenBank/National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) and Barcoding of Life Data Systems (BOLD). BLAST results of DNA sequences showed that there were no existing sequences available on NCBI/GenBank and BOLD. The DNA barcode sequences generated in this study can be employed as standards for this species and may be of use in taxonomic studies. Phylogenetic analysis demonstrated that the oysters from Oman exhibit homology with Saccostrea species cucullata or mordax.