Linking structural and functional characteristics of restored oyster reefs : A Restoration Project in the Virginia Coast Reserve

Authors

M. Lisa Kellogg, Virginia Institute of Marine ScienceFollow
Jeffrey C. Cornwell
Michael S. Owens
Mark Luckenbach, Virginia Institute of Marine ScienceFollow
Paige G. Ross, Virginia Institute of Marine ScienceFollow
Bowdoin Lusk

Document Type

Report

Department/Program

Virginia Institute of Marine Science

Publication Date

6-30-2014

Abstract

Eighteen native oyster reefs (16-m2 each) were restored using six oyster densities (0, 10, 25, 50, 100 and 250 adult oysters m-2) with three replicates of each density at an intertidal site in The Nature Conservancy’s Virginia Coast Reserve. Reef construction was successful and continues to provide a range of oyster biomass densities useful for exploring relationships between oyster reef structural and functional parameters. Between April 2012 and July 2013, a science-based monitoring program explored quantitative relationships between structural and functional characteristics of these restored reefs. Structural parameters examined included oyster abundance, oyster size/biomass, surface shell volume, reef topographic complexity and sediment characteristics. Functional parameters included denitrification rates and macrofaunal abundance and biomass. Relationships between reef structural parameters and functional parameters were complex and variable. As of July 2014, these reefs continue to serves as a platform for continued studies of the relationships between reef structural and functional characteristics.

Description

Hillcrest Oyster Sanctuary, Virginia Coast Reserve

DOI

http://doi.org/10.21220/V5KS3Q

Keywords

Oysters. Oyster culture--Virginia. Restoration ecology--Virginia.

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.

Funding

The Nature Conservancy and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Community Restoration Program

Recommended Citation

Kellogg, M. L., Cornwell, J. C., Owens, M. S., Luckenbach, M., Ross, P. G., & Lusk, B. (2014) Linking structural and functional characteristics of restored oyster reefs : A Restoration Project in the Virginia Coast Reserve. Virginia Institute of Marine Science, William & Mary. http://doi.org/10.21220/V5KS3Q