DARPA is funding reef structures that will be colonized by corals and bivalves

It’s just occurring to me now that some of the more beautiful beaches I know of in my area, with natural sand deposits that aren’t suffering from erosion, are also oyster beds. At low tide the beds are exposed. They extend another 20 meters out to the ocean from where they’re visible, give or take a few meters.

Maybe that’s coincidence. There are also immense beaches in places like tofino where no such beds exist, but the beaches are huge and sandy without particularly evident erosion. They are the work of much larger tidal and current systems though, so maybe a different beast altogether.

Oysters are so much fun to harvest with kids. Throw on a mask and snorkel, grab a catch bag, and swim around looking for the perfect size for cooking over a fire on a rack. Kids are awesome at it. You can feed half a dozen people easily with half an hour in the water. It’s a bonus if there’s sea asparagus nearby. Bring some lemons and corn on the cob or something similar and it makes for an incredible evening. My best memories of this are on Cortes Island in BC. There are some magnificent oyster beds all over that island, but relatively few (especially that are safe to eat) here in Victoria.