Identification of Tambelo (Bactronophorus thoracites) in Wamesa Waters, Manokwari, West Papua, Indonesia

Abstract

Tambelo, otherwise known as shipworm, is a marine bivalve mollusk comprising 16 genera in the Teridinidae family, of which Teredo is the most frequently mentioned. Furthermore, the only species in the genus Bactronophorus is the wood borer, Bactronophorus thoracites (Teredinidae), which has a wide distribution in the Indo-West Pacific biogeographical region. Identifying shipworm species is difficult due to their high diversity and the limited information about their taxonomic characteristics, which often leads to identification errors by collectors. Papuan people consume tambelo as a substitute for side dishes because they are believed to be able to cure various diseases. Therefore, this study aims to establish by morphology and molecular analysis that tambelo belongs to the B. thoracites of the Teredinidae family. Tambelo was identified using the morphological method of observing the physical characterization of the palette, which is unique between genera. It was collected from a mangrove forest near Wamesa Beach, Manokwari District, Indonesia. Meanwhile, this study adopted PCR, an identification method that uses DNA from a small number of samples and can provide a DNA sample sequence. Morphological analysis based on pallet characterization showed that the characteristics of the tambelo pallet were similar to those of the B. thoracites based on the identification book. In addition, the molecular phylogenetic analysis using two mitochondrial protein-coding genes, cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI), showed tambelo was 91% similar to B. thoracites from mangroves environment on the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia, Malaysia.