Oysters Filtering Chesapeake Bay Water - Matapeake Pier - Summer 2023

Eastern oysters, the species found in the Chesapeake Bay and parts of the Atlantic coast, are critical to the Chesapeake ecosystem. They are an important food source and the reefs they form provide habitats for fish and crustaceans. Each mature oyster can filter gallons of water daily and consume algae, which removes excess nutrients and helps clarify the water. In this video, we put about a dozen mature oysters into a fish tank and filled it with cloudy water pulled directly from the Chesapeake Bay. After about four hours, the water was mostly clear thanks to the oysters' natural filtering power. Maryland's Department of Natural Resources is working to bring back depleted Eastern oyster populations in the Chesapeake Bay by supporting restoration efforts, incentivizing aquaculture, and sustainably managing the public oyster fishery.

[@DundalkTV]

How wonderful!!!