Bronx River pilot oyster reef restoration: Methods, monitoring, and community participation

Eastern Oysters (Crassostrea virginica) were once plentiful in the NY/NJ Harbor but, due to disease, over-harvesting and poor water quality, the population declined to nearly zero in the early 1900's. Oysters are still located in pocket populations around the harbor today, including off Soundview Park at the confluence of the Bronx and East River. The New York City Department of Parks and Recreation Natural Resources Group (NRG) tested clamshell as a substrate for oyster spat settlement at this location. With the help of community partners, we placed 205 plastic mesh bags of clam shell at the project site covering a basal area of 16.5 m². The shells were monitored for oyster spat settlement and for invertebrate, fish, and algae colonization. Two comparison plots, an intertidal rocky outcrop and rocky shoreline were monitored for live oysters and oyster shells. Preliminary results show that the oyster larvae favored clam shell substrate over substrate available in the comparison plots, and that the bagged clam shell substrate created a community reef environment, with 16 different organisms observed during monitoring. Community participation was important for all stages of the reef project. Over 1000 hours of community work went into the project and survey results showing that high school age students showed an understanding of and enthusiasm for the restoration work. Further monitoring work, systematic shell placement and community participation is needed to gather more information about this project site and to inform future oyster restoration projects at this and other NY/NJ estuary sites.