Oyster

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Oyster is a common name for bivalve (hinged shell) MOLLUSCS, including true oysters (order Ostreoida) and tropical pearl oysters (order Pterioida), found chiefly in temperate and warm shallow waters. True oysters have been cultivated for centuries and are much used for food; they are the huîtres of French cuisine. Their shells are irregular in outline and fixed to a surface by the left (lower) valve or half-shell. They are divided according to whether young are brooded within the shell, or whether development occurs free in the PLANKTON. Incubatory oysters have no commercial significance in Canada, although a substantial fishery for the Olympic oyster (Ostrea lurida) existed on the West Coast until its depletion in 1930. An attempt has been made to introduce the European flat oyster (O. edulis) to Nova Scotia. Nonincubatory oysters (eg, eastern oyster, Crassostrea virginica, and Pacific oyster, C. gigas) support significant AQUACULTURE operations on both coasts.

Author FRANK R. BERNARD


Links to Other Sites
Canadian Biodiversity Website
A great information source for all budding biologists. Learn about biodiversity theory, natural history, and conservation issues. From McGill’s Redpath Museum.

Aquaculture Atlas of Canada
Find out about Canada’s growing aquaculture industry in all ten provinces and in the Yukon. Features profiles of selected species.

Harvests of Prince Edward Island
The "Harvests of Prince Edward Island" project utilizes the collections and resources of the Island's community museums to explore a number of the harvests which have been important to the Island's history. From the Community Museums Association of Prince Edward Island and the Virtual Museum of Canada.

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