This multi-reserve catalyst project compared established and emerging methods for assessing intertidal oyster reef community structure and ecosystem function. With their partners, the project catalyzed a strong community of practice in the Southeastern U.S. to support management efforts related to oyster reef conservation and the advancement of monitoring protocol.
The Project
Intertidal oyster reefs provide key habitat for a diverse and productive community of estuarine fauna, yet have declined drastically due to overfishing and disease outbreaks. With increased conservation and restoration efforts for intertidal oyster reefs, there is a need for more efficient ways of assessing oyster reefs as well as more holistic understandings of how oyster reefs function as habitats for other estuarine animals. However, assessing the ecosystem benefits of intertidal oyster reefs is challenging because the reefs occupy a dynamic tidal environment characterized by highly turbid water. Established sampling techniques for assessing intertidal oyster reefs are labor intensive and therefore difficult to replicate at multiple sites, limiting the ecological information they can provide, especially at large scales. In contrast, emerging techniques prove promising for examining intertidal oyster reef community structure and ecosystem function.
Collaborating with four reserves and five universities, this project compared established sampling techniques for assessing intertidal oyster reefs with four emerging methods that each provide unique ecological information:
- High-Resolution Acoustic Imaging
- Stable Isotope Analysis
- eDNA Metabarcoding
- Oyster Disease Assays
The project team applied these methods alongside traditional methods for collection of free-swimming marine organisms via nets/traps at four reserves in the southeastern U.S. Afterwards, the team convened with their partners and intended users to examine the results and evaluate the potential utility and feasibility of incorporating the emerging methods into their research and monitoring programs. Users overwhelmingly expressed that expanded application of these emerging techniques could improve the assessment of the function of multiple different oyster reef types. The results of this Catalyst project, along with the collaborative network that project has built, bolsters technical capacity at reserves and state agencies to understand the function of critical habitats.
The Impact
- Improved understanding of emerging methods of evaluating the value of oyster reefs for estuarine fauna.
- Catalyzed ideas for the standardization of oyster reef monitoring and integration of new metrics of assessment.
- Strengthened partnerships and built a robust collaborative network of reserves, agencies and users in the southeastern US.
