Senior Project Senior Project Oyster Restoration Project Oyster Restoration Project

By: Kendall WinnBy: Kendall Winn

Facts about the Chesapeake BayFacts about the Chesapeake Bay

It is the largest Estuary in the

US

Once known as the “Great shellf ish Bay”

An Estuary is a semi-enclosed body of water that has a free connection with the sea

The bay is The bay is shallowshallow Average depth is 21 ft.

The deepestThe deepest spot is near Annapolis spot is near Annapolis

MD: 174 feetMD: 174 feet

The Bay Provides:Habitats (homes)

FoodNursery (juvenile species)

Bay OrganismsThe Bay is home to over 3600 living organisms!

The Bay area is home to over 15,000,000 people!

About 50,000 commercial

vessels enter the Bay each

year

What about the Oysters?What about the Oysters?

Oysters Clean–edthe Bay

Oyster REEFS Oyster REEFS providedprovided a a

natural filtering natural filtering system and system and

protected many protected many juvenile speciesjuvenile species

85% of the reefs 85% of the reefs are goneare gone

Think about it!Think about it!

1 adult oyster filters about 50 gallons of water in 24 hours

19 trillion gallons of water in one week use to be filtered

What Happened?What Happened?

By the 1920s, By the 1920s, dredging removed dredging removed ¾ of our oyster ¾ of our oyster reefs reefs

By the 2By the 2ndnd half of the half of the 2020 thth century, the century, the remaining reefs remaining reefs were destroyed were destroyed

by by disease, disease, overharvesting overharvesting and pollutionand pollution

So Why Collect Shells?So Why Collect Shells? SPATS (Babies)SPATS (Babies) Baby oysters grow Baby oysters grow

on existing oyster on existing oyster shells!shells!

Existing oyster Existing oyster shells are not easy shells are not easy to get and to get and are not are not freefree

Oyster Growth in a Oyster Growth in a ‘Shell’‘Shell’ Spats are grown in Spats are grown in

various research labs various research labs (VIMS) or by non-(VIMS) or by non-profitsprofits

Vilegers (swimming Vilegers (swimming stage of the oyster) stage of the oyster) ‘sense’ a protein that ‘sense’ a protein that al lows them to al lows them to recognize an existing recognize an existing shellshell

Once they receive a Once they receive a signal, they begin signal, they begin their voyage towards their voyage towards it and attach for l i feit and attach for l i fe

Now they grow into adult Now they grow into adult oysters and if lucky, oysters and if lucky, reproduce with other reproduce with other exist ing adult oystersexist ing adult oysters

It all Begins It all Begins withwith AND Supporters

Oyster RestorationOyster RestorationStudents part icipate in Oyster Restoration by monitoring the growth of SPATS

CBF helps programs find transfer spots for the adult oysters

Students end their project by transferring the oysters to a protected reef

Without ShellsWithout Shells Without shells, Without shells,

programs to grow programs to grow oysters wil l not oysters wil l not continuecontinue

Without shells, oyster Without shells, oyster reefs wil l continue to reefs wil l continue to disappeardisappear

Without shells, our Without shells, our Bay wil l not surviveBay wil l not survive

Without shells Without shells mil l ions of other mil l ions of other species that rely on species that rely on oysters wil l dieoysters wil l die

Our Project Our Project

Drop OffDrop Off

We NEED your SHELLSWe NEED your SHELLS