2017 Oyster Reef Monitoring Report

Description

The 2014 Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement includes a goal to restore oyster populations in ten Chesapeake Bay tributaries by 2025. In Maryland, Harris Creek was the first tributary selected for large-scale oyster restoration, followed by the Little Choptank and Tred Avon rivers. A set of oyster restoration success criteria, commonly known as the Chesapeake Bay Oyster Metrics, was developed by scientists and resource managers prior to implementing restoration work. Consistent with tributary-specific restoration plans and the Oyster Metrics success criteria, partners collaboratively monitor each restored reef three years, and again six years, after restoration treatment. This report describes the results from monitoring the 2014 cohort, or reefs that were restored in 2014 and monitored in 2017.