Welcome to summer! Things are heating up over here at Wild Oyster Project and we have lots to share with you plus another fascinating article from Chelsey and Gabe in their Holy Moly Olys series.
With restrictions lifting we are ready to get of our shells and start having in person events again! And our first one is this Thursday!
India Basin Shoreline Park Groundbreaking
Alert! Alert! In person event!
Wild Oyster Project will be tabling at the groundbreaking event for India Basin Shoreline Park. This renovation project will turn a brownfield site into a park that provides public access to the waterfront, recreation, and restored habitat. We will be there to help celebrate the beginning of this project and as always, to spread the good word on native oysters. Stop by and say hello!
When: Thursday, June 17th 3-4:30pm
Where: Hunters Point Blvd and Hawes
Our first Oyster Base Camp is now in the water!
Base Camp 1 is stationed at a private dock in Richmond. Warm temps mean warmer water as well. Olympias need water to reach at least 60 degrees in order to spawn. The chilly water of the Bay usually reaches it's peak temperatures in late summer to early fall, that's why we'll be working hard to deploy our remaining four prototypes in the next few months.
We worked with a very talented designer, Aubrey Fite, to create this Oyster Base Camp poster. Thanks Aubrey!
The Secret Formula
Holy Moly Olys Part Three
After our last two issues of “Holy Moly, 'Olys'!” our readers are now experts at growing delicious native 'Olys'! However, we still haven’t talked about one key ingredient. This ingredient lives invisibly in a microscopic realm full of spheres, spaceships, and stars so unique it’s hard to believe they’re from Earth. These creatures are plankton and are the most important ingredient to growing healthy ‘Olys’.
From the Greek word “planktos,” which means “drifter,” plankton includes a wide variety of plants (phytoplankton) and animals (zooplankton) that move with the ocean’s tides and currents. Other types of plankton include bacteria (bacterioplankton) and viruses (virioplankton). Even some large creatures such as the Mola Mola (AKA the world’s largest bony fish) can be considered plankton as they cannot swim against a current! In terms of food for an oyster, however, it’s mostly the small plankton types, and any dissolved organic material they can find in the water.
Contrary to what you may have heard from a certain pineapple-dwelling sea sponge, plankton are true heroes of marine ecosystems. These microscopic organisms are hard at work producing two thirds of all the oxygen we breathe! Just like land plants, phytoplankton use chloroplasts and sunlight to create sugars. Phytoplankton then get eaten by other organisms and form the foundation of the food chain of the largest ecosystem on Earth. They are definitely small but mighty!
Our ‘Olys’ are voracious filter feeders that pull water through their gills which essentially act as a screen, kind of like a colander you would use to drain pasta. They then sort the edible particles (ie. plankton and other organic materials) and move them to the ‘Oly’s’ mouths where they can chow down.
Clockwise from top, Image 1: Plankton under a microscope Image 2: This diatom is known as Actinoptychus, and members of this genus resemble the radioactive material symbol! Image 3: This image shows Asterionellopsis on the left, and Chaetoceros on the right… There are around 400 species of Chaetoceros. They can be solitary, but most occur in chains that are coiled, or curved, or straight. They are characterized by having long spines (Chaeto means hair or bristle). Dense blooms of Chaetoceros can damage the gills of organisms, but they are also a great way for the diatoms to remain suspended in the water column. - Dr. Carol Vines Image Credit: Dr. Carol Vines
To give you an idea of the incredible diversity of these crucial organisms, we’ve included a few images from the legendary Dr. Carol Vines. Dr. Vines conducts weekly plankton sampling at the UC Davis Bodega Marine Laboratory, where she records changes within planktonic communities with the California Harmful Algal Bloom Monitoring and Alert Program (HABMAP). The two images include phytoplankton called diatoms. If you look closely, you can see the chloroplasts illuminated in the images. Chains of diatoms increase their ability to stay in the surface waters where they can absorb sunlight. Their cell wall is composed of silica (glass)!
Plankton are an amazing group of organisms, and we haven’t even scratched the surface of their fascinating world. Be sure to stay tuned for more awesome ‘Oly’ action!
About the Authors:
Chelsey Souza wears many hats in the name of oyster spat. She is a key member of the Wild Oyster team as well as a Junior Specialist at Bodega Marine Lab (BML), where she studies shellfish diseases and works closely with the Endangered White Abalone Recovery program headquartered at BML. As a Tomales (no, not “tamales”) Bay native, she grew up slurpin’ oysters on the half shell and has a great appreciation for them as both food and essential components of our local marine ecosystems.
Gabriel Tsuruta is an Animal Technician with BML’s Aquatic Resources Group (ARG), where he facilitates research at every level, from animal collections, to experiment construction, public outreach, and more. The ARG team also manages BML’s highly successful oyster hatchery which provides seed for local oyster farms as well as research and restoration. His favorite band is called, fittingly, The Ocean.
Wild Oyster Project on the Radio
This Thursday our Deputy Director, Casey Harper, will be joining Sequoia and the Early Bird on Roll Over Easy aka San Francisco's Best Community Radio Show. If you want to hear more about what Wild Oyster Project is up to, as well as some truly delightful spring-in-your step talk radio, tune in this Thursday from 7:30-9:30 am to BFF radio
Welcome Lazy Bear!
The modern american dinner experience is now part of the Wild Oyster Project family of restaurants donating their oyster shells to Save Your Shucks to be recycled into future Olympia Oyster habitat. If you've been thinking of trying their tasting menu, be rest assured it's for a good cause. Treat yourself and save the oysters!
https://www.lazybearsf.com/
Thank you for your encouragement and support. If you like to make a donation to Wild Oyster Project, that would be so appreciated.
