Oyster and seagrass restoration has taken off around the globe. The UN the started 'The Decade on Restoration' which is a global rallying cry to encourage everyone to help heal our planet. Our Oyster restoration project is the latest in a growing network of Native oyster projects around the UK with a shared love of these ecosystem engineers. I would like to take this chance to give details of just a few of these project. Not only have they made a great start in restoring native oysters but are also happy to help any new project and have been an invaluable resource in the early stages of our Oyster and Seagrass restoration projects.
The Wild Oysters project
The Wild Oyster Project is a national collaboration between the ZSL, Blue Marine Foundation and British Marine working within local organisations to restore native oysters. The Wild Oyster Project has set up nurseries in Conwy Marina (North Wales), Fairlie Quay Marina (West Scotland), and Sunderland Marina (Northeast England). They are now looking into the best site for seabed restoration so larvae from their nurseries will have a place to settle. By Using marinas for nurseries the wild oyster project has done an excellent job at involving local communities in oyster restoration. This is the model we hope to follow in our restoration project.
Website - https://wild-oysters.org/
Seawilding
Seawilding is a community led Seagrass
and Native Oyster restoration project based in Loch Craignish, Argyll. They get juvenile oysters (known as spat) from Morecombe Bay hatchery which weigh around 1 gram when they arrive. These spat are then kept in nurseries until they grow to around 12 grams when they are released onto the sea floor. Using this method Seawilding have restored over 300,000 native oysters to Loch Craignish
Website - https://www.seawilding.org/
ENORI
The Essex Native Oyster Restoration Initiative (ENORI) is one of many projects in the Native Oyster Network. It is the largest oyster restoration project in the UK by area. Unlike many other restoration projects, this project is taking place in an area were there is still an intact Oyster fishery. They are located in the The Blackwater, Crouch, Roach and Colne Marine Conservation Zone which was designated for the protection of Oyster beds. They have created a 200ha conservation box for habitat restoration, and have restored more than 30,000 adult oysters.
Website - https://essexnativeoyster.com/
This is just a snapshot of the work going on around the UK to restore the Native oyster. I have been amazed by the support and advice that these projects have given us in our attempt to help the national effort to restore native oysters.