"A disturbing nationwide decline in oysters and the life-giving reefs that they build is particularly dramatic in California, where the once-abundant native species has been virtually wiped out, according to a recent scientific study. The report, published in the scientific journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, said Olympia oysters, once an integral part of the Native American diet and a staple during the San Francisco Gold Rush, are functionally extinct. "Essentially, today, the number of oyster reefs is zero," said Rob Brumbaugh, restoration director for the Nature Conservancy and co-author of the study. "It's the complete elimination of a key species and habitat on the West Coast." The loss of native oysters - not to be confused with the farm-raised Japanese Pacific oysters - is a serious issue, he said, because oysters clean the water by filter feeding. A single oyster can filter up to 30 gallons of water a day, removing nitrogen and other pollutants, Brumbaugh said. The oyster beds, or reefs, they create provide habitat for myriad fish, crabs and other creatures. "What they do for us is filter water and help remove nitrogen pollution while increasing the growth and survival of other fish," Brumbaugh said. "Oysters and the reefs that they create are great pollution scrubbers." ‌ Important food source The problem is widespread throughout the country. The first-of-its-kind study, funded with grants from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, found that the size of oyster reefs in the dozens of bays and estuaries across the U.S. where there is comparable data has shrunk 64 percent in 110 years. Worse, the number of living oysters dropped 88 percent nationwide, according to the study. Olympia oysters, known scientifically as Ostrea lurida, once blanketed subtidal regions from Southern California to Southeastern Alaska. The tangy delicacy was a crucial source of food for local Indians long before... more... - Spidra Webster from Bookmarklet

The same is true of a lot of areas on the east coast. - John (bird whisperer)

The 49ers really cut a swathe through them. - Spidra Webster