Eastern oyster

Eastern oyster
Oyster bed in the Marshes of Glynn, Brunswick, Georgia, USA

Vulnerable  (NatureServe)[1]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Bivalvia
Order: Ostreida
Family: Ostreidae
Genus: Crassostrea
Species:
C. virginica
Binomial name
Crassostrea virginica
(Gmelin, 1791)
Synonyms[2]
  • Crassostrea floridensis Sowerby
  • Dioeciostrea americana Orton, 1928
  • Lopha gibsonsmithi Macsotay & Campos, 2001
  • Ostraea floridensis G.B. Sowerby II, 1871
  • Ostraea reniformis G.B. Sowerby II, 1871
  • Ostraea rostrata Chemnitz, 1785
  • Ostrea borealis Lamarck, 1819
  • Ostrea canadensis Lamarck, 1819
  • Ostrea procyon Holmes, 1858
  • Ostrea triangularis Holmes, 1856
  • Ostrea virginiana Röding, 1798
  • Ostrea virginica Gmelin, 1791

The eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica)—also called the Atlantic oyster, American oyster, or East Coast oyster—is a species of true oyster native to eastern North and South America. Other names in local or culinary use include the Wellfleet oyster,[3] Virginia oyster, Malpeque oyster, Blue Point oyster, Chesapeake Bay oyster, and Apalachicola oyster. C. virginica ranges from northern New Brunswick south through parts of the West Indies[4] to Venezuela.[5][6]: 7  It is farmed in all of the Maritime provinces of Canada and all Eastern Seaboard and Gulf states of the United States, as well as Puget Sound, Washington, where it is known as the Totten Inlet Virginica.[7] It was introduced to the Hawaiian Islands in the 19th century and is common in Pearl Harbor.[8]

The eastern oyster is an important commercial species. Its distribution has been affected by habitat change; less than 1% of the population present when the first European colonists arrived is thought to remain in the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries.[9] As of 2014, the global conservation status of Crassostrea virginica, as assessed by NatureServe, is "vulnerable," as the oyster's populations are threatened by overharvest and water pollution.[1] Other threats to the eastern oyster include global warming, diseases and parasites, and competition with invasive species.[10]

  1. ^ a b NatureServe (6 January 2023). "Crassostrea virginica". NatureServe Network Biodiversity Location Data accessed through NatureServe Explorer. Arlington, Virginia: NatureServe. Retrieved 28 January 2023.
  2. ^ "Crassostrea virginica (Gmelin, 1791)". Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
  3. ^ "What Makes Wellfleet Oysters Special?". Wellfleet OysterFest. Retrieved April 16, 2015.
  4. ^ McMurray, Patrick (2002). "Guidebook of Introduced Marines Species of Hawaii". Bishop Museum and University of Hawaii.
  5. ^ "Crassostrea virginica". National Estuarine and Marine Exotic Species Information System. Smithsonian Environmental Research Center. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
  6. ^ Carriker, Melbourne R.; Gaffney, Patrick M. (1996). "Chapter 1: A Catalogue of Selected Species of Living Oyster (Ostreacea) of the World". In Kennedy, Victor S.; Newell, Roger I.E.; Eble, Albert F. (eds.). The Eastern Oyster: Crassotrea virginica. College Park: Maryland Sea Grant College. pp. 1–18. ISBN 0-943-676-61-4. LCCN 96-076817. Retrieved 2 February 2023 – via NOAA Institutional Repository.
  7. ^ Apple Jr., R.W. (2006-04-26). "The Oyster Is His World". The New York Times. Retrieved 2006-04-27.
  8. ^ "Crassostrea virginica, Introduced Marine Species of Hawaii Guidebook". www2.bishopmuseum.org. Retrieved 2021-01-01.
  9. ^ Newell, R.I.E. (August 1988) [Proceedings of a Conference, 29–31 March 1988, Baltimore, Maryland]. "Ecological Changes in Chesapeake Bay: Are They The Result of Overharvesting the American Oyster, Crassostrea virginica?". In Lynch, M.P.; Krome, E.C. (eds.). Understanding the Estuary: Advances in Chesapeake Bay Research. Solomons, Maryland: Chesapeake Research Consortium. pp. 536–546. CRC Publication No. 129, CBP/TRS 24/88. Retrieved 29 January 2023 – via National Service Center for Environmental Publications, United States Environmental Protection Agency.
  10. ^ Eastern Oyster Biological Review Team (March 2007). Status review of the eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica). Report to the National Marine Fisheries Service, Northeast Regional Office. February 16, 2007 (Report). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Tech Memo NMFS-F/SPO-88. Retrieved 28 January 2023.