News Flash

HWRP Oyster Gardeners from the Sunset Boating Center Team enjoyed some Spring-like weather for their tending session on Feb. 11, 2018!

The February Team: We welcomed new oyster gardeners Cyndy, Mack, and Adriene! We also enjoyed 3 members of Hampton University SEEDS ecology club: Jaelyn, Janelle, and Maia. HWRP-ers Chip, Becky, and Claire Neubert rounded out the team. We also thank George, who stopped by to donate a tray for our use.

What did we notice about our gardens? We were delighted to find a small fish in our oyster habitat (Is it a blennie? A skilletfish?). We also continue to see grass shrimp using our oysters as a good place to hang out. As you can see from the pictures, we have a few "Rock Stars"--oyster shells covered in lots of baby oysters-- amongst the group. Sadly, we found that the wild spat that we caught on our plain shell did not fare well in the recent weather. It could be that those fragile babies got more exposed to the air than the other cages. It's not easy to be a baby oyster in winter, and now we "parents" know that likely as little as 2-3 inches in cage depth made a difference, especially when a weather phenomenon like the "Bomb Cyclone" created such incredibly low tides.

Thanks, everyone, who was able to make it to this tending session!

HWRP Chair Claire Neubert said, "This is one of my favorite activities, so I am already looking forward to seeing you at our next session, which will be on Saturday, March 10th, 11 a.m."

In the meantime, please consider joining in on this webinar on oysters!

Oyster Webinar, Wed. Feb. 14, 12:30 p.m. Jackie Shannon, CBF Oyster Restoration Manager will discuss the important role that oysters have played in Virginia’s economy, how and why they are rebounding and ways in which you can participate in their recovery. FREE. Register https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_-VM6T0hOS2WY9QTYHmmQ9g