What happens when a drought in Florida estuaries causes a rise in the salt levels in water? Fewer wild oysters appear on restaurant menus, for starters.
New research from Northeastern Universitymarine and environmental sciences professor David Kimbro and graduate student Hanna Garland, published in PLOS ONE, links the deterioration of oyster reefs in Florida’s Matanzas River Estuary to a population outbreak of carnivorous conchs and high water salinity—or saltiness—caused by a prolonged regional drought.
This isn’t just bad news for oyster lovers.
“Coastal ecosystems around the world depend greatly on the services provided by oysters,” Kimbro said. “They are important for the stabilization of shorelines, filtration of coastal water, protection of important economically valuable fishes and invertebrates, and the removal of excess nitrogen.”
As a result of degradation, overharvesting, and human activity, the global abundance of this habitat has declined by 85 percent, according to the Nature Conservancy. Today, most of the world’s remaining reefs are concentrated in only six eco-regions—four in the United States.
“Luckily, there are government and non-government-led efforts that will begin to restore this habitat in 15 different states,” Kimbro said. “But if an area to be restored contains or is likely to develop an outbreak of conchs like the one in Matanzas, then the restoration effort will fail, regardless of the expenditure of effort or expense, unless the salinity and conch problem is first solved.”
When one of these eco-regions experiences an environmental stress, like that seen in the Floridian estuary, the impact can be felt across industry and ecosystems.
