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OYSTERS

LET'S TALK ABOUT OYSTERS

Oysters provide valuable services in estuaries and coastal communities including:

  • water filtration benefiting water quality and clarity

  • allow light to reach submerged aquatic vegetation

  • provide habitats for juvenile fish, invertebrates, and other sessile organisms

  • foraging grounds for wading birds and fishes

  • stabilize shorelines and reduce erosion

  • recreational activities

  • economics

  • ...and more!

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WHAT MAKES AN OYSTER HEALTHY?

There are many factors that go into understanding the status of an oyster population including:

Biological (biotic)

  • plankton availability

  • reef substrate

  • disease

  • oyster density

  • oyster size

  • oyster growth/ mortality rates

  • community structure

Environmental (abiotic):

  • temperature

  • salinity

  • pH

  • water depth

  • tidal inundation

Human

  • oyster harvesting

  • oyster shell additions/ removals

THREATS

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Nearly 85% of oysters have been lost globally and the density of market-sized oysters have declined across the United States (Beck et al. 2011, zu Ermgassen et al. 2012, Marcum et al. 2018). This loss could be attributed to several threats:

  • poor water quality

  • habitat degradation 

  • diseases

  • over-harvesting

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