The Shellfish C.A.R.E. program is an initiative of Cornell Cooperative Extension Marine Program. It is an opportunity for citizens to gain hands on scientific and restoration experience in a manageable way. Members will raise spat on shell (SOS) oysters in a modified milk crate or similar vessel for the months of July and August into September. SOS are oyster shells that have larval oysters set on them. As the oysters grow, members will clean and take weekly measurements of the oysters to track growth and survival. The ideal location and patrons for this program would be those with access to the water, either through a marina, yacht/boating club or other arrangements that can be made. One important detail to note is these oysters are NOT for human consumption. They are strictly for restoration purposes.

Once your application has been approved and payment is received, a milk crate will be filled up to one inch with shell seeded with oyster larvae. Although the volume of shell seems underwhelming at first, by the end of the season you can expect exponential growth from your oysters. To the point where they may outgrow the crate! In this instance I would have you reach out to CCE Staff and coordinate the plan to house these oysters at no additional cost. 

Through members efforts, we are able to add oysters around 40mm or 1.5 inches in length to the reef. This is significantly larger than the traditional planting size for restoration. At this size they are far less vulnerable to predation from organisms like fish, sea stars, whelks and oyster drills. As these oysters grow, they will create 3D reef structures. Each of these oysters will have the potential to filter 50 gallons of water a day, removing harmful algal species from the water along with nutrients and heavy metals. The final benefit of these oysters is the potential for reproduction at an exponential scale. Each female oyster has the ability to produce up to 100 million eggs. Not all of these will survive, but even if .001% of them do that could be an addition of 1,000 oysters per female. These larvae can either make their way back onto our oyster reef or venture out and colonize their own reef.  

At the end of the season, the crates and oysters are collected by CCE Marine staff for deployment onto restored oyster reefs. To the left is a picture of our reef at Goldstar, built in 2022 and we also have a reef in Northport and one in Islip, both built in 2023. The crates will be overwintered by CCE Staff and necessary repairs will be made. If you’re interested in seeing more, please click the “Gallery” link at the top of the website