![]() ![]() Augustine.īy putting out tiles from each family at sites across this same geographic range (FL to NC), we can tell if some sites or regions are inherently better than others for oysters (for instance, as I’m currently learning first-hand, there’s a reason that everyone wants to spend the winter in FL!), or if some families are naturally better than others (think Family Feud with oysters), or if the oysters that came from a particular site do best at that site, but not in other places (like the ‘home field advantage’ that recently helped Maryland beat Duke in basketball). (If you don’t remember and want to check it out, go here.)Įvan and Tanya admiring our work after we deployed the first reef in St. These are the sorts of crazy job skills that don’t go on a standard resume!Īny of you who have been following the blog for a while may remember the craziness of the our first NSF tile experiment (Tile 1.0) in the fall of 2010, which involved collecting lots of juvenile oysters (“spat”) that had recently settled in the field, bringing them back to the lab, and using a dremel to carefully separate that from the shell they settled on. In doing this lots and lots of times, we’ve learned who in the lab has a special knack for placing small drops of marine glue – Zspar (which you can see in the video) – on tiles, and who is better at adding the oysters so that the 2 valves of their shells don’t get glued shut. Our method of choice for this task is to glue the oysters to standardized tiles, place some in cages to protect them from predators, leave the rest to fend for themselves, and then put them in the field and see what happens over time. ![]() One of the primary goals of several projects in our labs involves figuring out where oysters grow and survive the best, and if they don’t survive, why not? Sounds pretty basic, and it is, but by doing this across lots of sites/environments, we can start to detect general patterns and identify important factors for oyster growth and survival that maybe we didn’t appreciate before. #Oyster spat student field worksheet fullIn addition, oyster beds form large, complex structures where many aquatic species, such as fish and crabs, hunt for food and hide from predators.An “open” cage, with full predator access. This promotes the growth of underwater grasses, such as wild celery, which serve as important habitat for other species. From this point forward, the oysters are self-sustaining, filtering all the nutrients they need directly from the water in their environment.īecause oysters are filter feeders, they help keep the water clean. The tiles or shells that hold the spat are secured to frames or in cages and submerged along an intertidal area or suspended from a long line. ![]() The successful farming of oysters and other shellfish relies upon successful settlement of larvae onto a selected substrate-typically other oyster shells or ceramic tiles-within a hatchery or wild setting. Oysters are frequently cultivated for food and pearls. Once the larvae permanently attach to a surface, they are known as spat. When oysters reproduce, they spawn tiny larvae that freely navigate the water column until they find an appropriate habitat with a structure to settle on. Oysters are a type of shellfish that live in brackish and saltwater bays, estuaries, and tidal creeks. ![]()
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