What is the Sea Synergy Oyster Project?
The Sea Synergy Oyster Project (SSOP) was established to study the remaining population of European Native Oysters (Ostrea edulis) and the associated marine biodiversity in the Portmagee Channel, SW Ireland. Through a better understanding of the oysters in the Channel SSOP’s ultimate aim is to undertake an oyster reef restoration project while at the same time raising both locals’ and visitors’ awareness of the significance of both these oysters and the Portmagee Channel in which they live.
Why Ostrea edulis?
O. edulis are filter feeding bivalves. They have two shells, hinged at the base, to protect their soft boneless bodies. To feed they open their shells and pump water across their gills, filtering out microscopic algae and small organic particles from the surrounding water. A single oyster can filter up to a staggering 200 litres of seawater per day!
The larvae of O. edulis like to settle on the surface of live or dead shells in close proximity to adult oysters – preferably on top of them. This results in the formation of complex 3D structures, referred to as oyster reefs, which are very important habitats in their own right for a range of marine species.
O. edulis were once very common in European coastal waters but due to overfishing, disease and the introduction of invasive species its population in UK and Irish waters has declined by 95%. The decline of O. edulis means their reefs are categorised as ‘Critically Endangered’ on the European Habitat Red List.
O. edulis reefs provide many ecosystem services, the most important of which is improved water clarity and quality caused by a substantial population of oysters filtering particles out of the water. This in turn makes photosynthesis easier for algae and plants and improves the health and biodiversity of the surrounding environment.
Reef structures also stabilise the sea bed helping reduce coastal erosion and provide shelter, living space and food for many marine organisms.
Why the Portmagee Channel?
The Portmagee Channel in south-west Kerry is designated a Special Area of Conservation (SAC) because of the important habitats it contains, such as eelgrass and maerl beds, as well as being home to a number of rare, and endemic species. For example, the anemone Edwardsia delapiae (named after Kerry’s very own Maude Delap) is not found anywhere else in the world, and the horseshoe worm (Phoronis psammophila) is found nowhere else in Ireland or Britain. It is also home to a small population of Ostrea edulis which contains some of the largest living oysters recorded in Ireland and the UK with some individuals measuring 178mm in height.
This summer Sea Synergy surveyed a total of nine sites around the Portmagee Channel to:
- improve our understanding of the distribution and relative density of Ostrea edulis and,
- establish a baseline of the biodiversity within the channel.
Our Aim this year
- To expand on last year’s work; conducting surveys for oysters and biodiversity in both the intertidal and subtidal, at new sites in the channel and recording abiotic factors.
- Involve the local community through a series of classroom, seashore, snorkel workshops and beach cleans. Allowing us to use citizen science to gather more data across a greater area of the channel.
- Provide a current student of the ocean sciences with an internship which will involve training, public engagement and invaluable field experience.
Our Funders
- National Parks and Wildlife Services (NPWS) Grant for Small Recording Projects 2024. This grant allows us to purchase the equipment, and training necessary to Snorkel 9 locations within Portmagee channel to observe, record and map O.edulis distribution and process the data from these surveys and disseminate results to the wider community.
- Galway Atlantaquaria Grants for Small Conservation Projects 2024. Supports a current student of marine biology as an intern at sea Synergy offering them an invaluable chance to receive training and get first hand experience in conducting fieldwork, creating reports and engaging with the local community.
- Heritage Council Community Heritage Grant 2024. This grant would allow us to gather data to contribute to a biodiversity action plan on the behalf of Portmagee Tidy Towns and restoration plan for the endangered native oyster population in the area. Run a series of field and classroom based workshops about local biodiversity & SSOP encourages the local community to contribute to citizen science.
Past work & previous funding
National Parks and Wildlife Services (NPWS) Grant for Small Recording Projects 2023. This allowed us to purchase the equipment, field guides and training necessary to conduct biodiversity and oyster surveys within the channel at 9 sites, record and process the data from these surveys and disseminate results to the wider community.
Galway Atlantaquaria Grants for Small Conservation Projects 2023. This enabled us to support a current student of marine biology as an intern offering them an invaluable chance to receive training and get first hand experience in conducting fieldwork as part of the SSOP, creating reports and engaging with the local community.
View our full 2023 SSOP Report in PDF format
How to get involved
- Join one of our workshops; over the course of the summer and autumn we will be delivering a number of shore, snorkel and classroom workshops. These workshops are a chance to learn about the research we are doing and the biodiversity in the channel. The dates and locations for these can be found on our social media.
- Become a citizen scientist and contribute to our research using iNaturlist. https://uk.inaturalist.org/projects/sea-synergy-oyster-project
- If you are interested in getting involved or making a donation of any size or sort please get in touch.