Assessing Habitat Suitability for Pacific Oyster (Magallana gigas) in the Venice Lagoon

Oysters have an important role in protecting coastal-marine ecosystems, by providing several benefits such as filtering water, creating habitat, reducing eutrophication, controlling coastal erosion, absorbing carbon, and supporting biodiversity. The Pacific oyster, or Magallana gigas, is one of the most important bivalve species cultivated worldwide. Magallana gigas were brought for aquaculture to the Venice lagoon. This species finds a good home in the brackish water conditions of the lagoon, which are characterized among other things by salinity oscillations and the tidal currents. This species then naturally occurred in the lagoon, coexisting in wild populations with the local species. But pollution, climate change, and human activity all pose serious threats to natural environments, potentially affecting their survival. This study aimed to investigate the habitat suitability for Magallana gigas in the Venice lagoon, that is, which are the ideal conditions for Magallana gigas to grow, reproduce, and survive. This study focuses on environmental indicators such as water temperature, salinity, and depth to evaluate habitat suitability. MaxEnt is particularly useful for habitat suitability models. A key element of habitat suitability models is the selection of environmental characteristics that are assumed to be important for the target species. This study uses the Venice lagoon to test a suitability model for the Magallana gigas habitat. The allometrics of the Pacific oyster in the Venice Lagoon were also examined in the study. The habitat suitability model map is a useful tool for illustrating the implications of climate change and altering ecosystem conditions on oyster habitat suitability.