This multi-reserve catalyst project compared established and emerging methods for assessing intertidal oyster reef community structure and ecosystem function. With their partners, the project catalyzed a strong community of practice in the Southeastern U.S. to support management efforts related to oyster reef conservation and the advancement of monitoring protocol. The Project Intertidal oyster reefs provide key habitat for a diverse and productive community of estuarine fauna, yet have declined drastically due to overfishing and disease outbreaks. With increased conservation and restoration efforts for intertidal oyster reefs, there is a need for more efficient ways of assessing oyster reefs as well as more holistic understandings of how oyster reefs function as habitats for other estuarine animals. However, assessing the ecosystem benefits of intertidal oyster reefs is challenging because the reefs occupy a dynamic tidal environment characterized by highly turbid water. Established sampling techniques for assessing intertidal oyster reefs are labor intensive and therefore difficult to replicate at multiple sites, limiting the ecological information they can provide, especially at large scales. In contrast, emerging techniques prove promising for examining intertidal oyster reef community structure and ecosystem function. Collaborating with four reserves and five universities, this project compared established sampling techniques for assessing intertidal oyster reefs with four emerging methods that each provide unique ecological information: 1. High-Resolution Acoustic Imaging 2. Stable Isotope Analysis 3. eDNA Metabarcoding 4. Oyster Disease Assays The project team applied these methods alongside traditional methods for collection of free-swimming marine organisms via nets/traps at four reserves in the southeastern U.S. Afterwards, the team convened with their partners and intended users to examine the results and evaluate the potential utility and feasibility of incorporating the emerging methods into their research and monitoring programs. Users overwhelmingly expressed that expanded application of these emerging techniques could improve the assessment of the function of multiple different oyster reef types. The results of this Catalyst project, along with the collaborative network that project has built, bolsters technical capacity at reserves and state agencies to understand the function of critical habitats.

People have harvested oysters in Mississippi’s Grand Bay for more than 4,000 years. Today, that legacy is at a crossroads. Increased pollution from residential and industrial development and overtaxed wastewater treatment systems is flowing into the Bay with potentially far-reaching effects on ecosystems, human health, and local economies. To protect human health and identify areas at risk for habitat degradation and fisheries loss, local decision-makers need more information about the extent of these impacts on local ecosystems.

Coastal researchers, fishermen, fishery managers and educators teamed up to understand changes in shrimp populations in response to shifting environmental conditions in estuaries. The Project Shrimping has deep cultural and economic ties to the South Carolina and Georgia coasts, and the southeast US Atlantic coast region as a whole. However, over the past two decades, commercial shrimp landings have been highly variable. Fishery management agencies, extension offices, and several southeastern Reserves have identified the need to better understand how shrimp populations are responding to changing environmental conditions, including warmer winters and altered salinity regimes. To do this work, a diverse team with members from universities, fishery management agencies, fisheries extension offices, and Reserves came together to form the Lowcountry Shrimp Collaborative. The Lowcountry Shrimp Collaborative used a comprehensive approach to examine how environmental conditions in estuaries are affecting abundance and timing of shrimp populations throughout the region through examination of each stage of the shrimp life cycle. Together, the Collaborative: Analyzed and synthesized numerous ongoing, long-term (30+ years) datasets on multiple shrimp life history stages (postlarval, juvenile, sub-adult, adult, commercially harvested) and environmental conditions (water quality, including System-Wide Monitoring Program data); Conducted field sampling targeting shrimp and their prey in salt marsh creeks during spring and summer seasons, over two years, at three southeast Reserves; Ran controlled seawater laboratory experiments to understand the impacts of competition for limited resources between shrimp species during their overlapping periods of estuarine residency; and, Interviewed commercial shrimpers based in Georgia and South Carolina, to better understand historical changes in, and perceptions of environmental impacts on, the shrimp industry in the southeast US. The project found that estuarine water temperature is rising across the region, mainly driven by increases during winter months. Warming temperatures can alter the life histories of shrimp, including shifting body size, altering the timing of migratory cues, and modifying habitat use. These warmer temperatures are also resulting in longer shrimping seasons with shrimpers often able to continue harvesting well into January. These results were confirmed by observations shared by shrimpers, who joined for a project wrap-up event where the team presented results and engaged in lively discussions about research needs and opportunities for collaboration between researchers, managers, and the industry.

These data include publicly available datasets as well as three-dimensional model simulation data. This dataset is not publicly accessible because: These data are primarily non-EPA generated, and include datasets generated by the University of Edinburgh and The Nature Conservancy. This is a non-EPA led project. It can be accessed through the following means: Data may be available following publication via correspondence with the lead author. Format: Data are multi-faceted and include publicly available datasets as well as model simulation data generated outside EPA. This dataset is associated with the following publication: Zu Ermgazzen, P., J. Gair, B. Jarvis, L. Geselbracht, A. Birch, W. Scheffel, K. Smith, and B. DeAngelis. Using an ecosystem service model to inform restoration planning: A spatially explicit oyster filtration model for Pensacola Bay, Florida. Conservation Science and Practice. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, NJ, USA, 6(2): e13061, (2024).

Pint-sized with razor-sharp edges, Olympia oysters once flourished along Oregon’s rugged coast. Millions of them formed extensive beds that blanketed the tidal zones of places like Coos Bay and Yaquina bays, where they provided food and income for people and habitat for wildlife. In recent years, over-harvesting, development, sedimentation, pollution, dredging, and forest fires have all played a role in the dramatic decline of this native shellfish that, in many places, has become locally extinct. Bringing the “Oly” back is a priority for natural resource managers, scientists, shellfish farmers, and recreationists.

The project team established an experiment that mimicked commercial aquaculture practices and allowed for a robust comparison of nitrogen removal rates from three commonly used gear types: floating bags of oysters, oyster condos suspended in midwater, and bottom cages of oysters. All gear was deployed in the same environmental setting (Waquoit Bay, Falmouth, MA) and maintained by the Town of Falmouth in a manner that a typical grower would follow. The growing systems were maintained for two full growing seasons (2018 and 2019) and compared to a nearby control site. Every two weeks during the growing season, the team conducted a series of measurements to provide a robust estimate of nitrogen fluxes and microbial activity below each of the aquaculture operations. Measurements included: (1) nutrient analyses of sediment, porewater and bottom water samples, (2) genetic sequencing of RNA and DNA extracted from sediment samples to determine the presence and activity level of certain bacteria; and 3) measurements of N2 fluxes from sediment cores placed in flux chambers to measure N2 production rates. All three oyster growing methods enhanced nitrogen removal relative to the control site. However, gene expression data indicate that nitrogen retention may be induced under some gear, particularly after the end of July under bottom cages, and to a lesser extent other gear types.

These data represent oyster reefs in Georgia's coastal waterways, extending from Chatham County south to Glynn County. A pilot project for certain coastal regions was completed in 2013, with the remaining project areas finished in 2015. This mapping project was conducted under contract to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources with the goal of inventorying oyster reefs in Georgia's coastal waterways. Oyster reef extent polygons were created through heads-up digitization using 4-band, 6-inch resolution DMC digital aerial imagery as the source. This imagery was collected between November 2012 and February 2013. The minimum mapping unit is 5 square meters, though discretion was used to collect features smaller than this. Partners: Georgia Department of Natural Resources

The National Estuarine Research Reserve System has a proven track record of successfully transferring and translating reserve science to a broad suite of educators through teacher workshops. In recent years, teachers expressed a need for curriculum, data sets, and professional development related to climate change.

People receive numerous benefits from nature, such as water purification, coastal protection, and food production. These ecosystem services are an increasingly important consideration for coastal managers as they design management interventions to protect coastal habitat. This includes National Estuarine Research Reserve managers, who are working to better understand ecosystem services across the reserve system. However, without a standardized approach it has been difficult for coastal managers to consistently incorporate ecosystem services into programs or projects. In response to this need, researchers with Duke University’s National Ecosystem Services Partnership developed Ecosystem Services Conceptual Models (ESCMs) for estuarine habitats that diagram the way a management intervention cascades through an ecological system and provides benefits to people. The Duke team built on previous work that created an ecosystem services modeling approach for salt marsh. In partnership with the Rookery Bay and North Carolina National Estuarine Research Reserves and their stakeholders, the team led a series of workshops to produce site-specific and generalized Ecosystem Services Conceptual Models for mangrove and oyster habitat restoration in the southeast United States. This catalyst project was funded by NOAA through the National Estuarine Research Reserve System Science Collaborative to advance collaborative science. It did not produce any new data.

The project team produces educational outreach materials for audiences throughout Grand Bay. The materials will raise awareness of the positive and negative effects of land-use change for the general public, community organizations, and decisionmakers within the region. The materials will educate audiences about the ways to preserve and protect Grand Bay from waterborne pathogens and excess nutrients. The team will use science-based information to reinforce the importance of reducing stormwater contamination, improving wastewater management, and implementing land-use planning that takes water resources into account. This science transfer project was funded by NOAA through the National Estuarine Research Reserve System Science Collaborative to promote the use of science. It did not produce any new data.