The next time you’re chowing down on some oysters or other shellfish, take a moment to think about South Australia’s local shellfish reefs. These ecosystems have been destroyed in many coastal areas, becoming some of the most impacted marine ecosystems around the world, and Flinders University marine biology experts have warned that reef restoration is now more important than ever.
New research led by Brad Martin, a PhD candidate from the College of Science and Engineering at Flinders, has examined historical records of South Australia’s shellfish ecosystems to uncover crucial insights into past reef management methods that can guide modern restoration attempts.
In a new article published in Ocean and Coastal Management, Martin says: “As we approach the middle of the United Nation’s Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, shellfish ecosystems have suffered enormous declines worldwide, including losses of up to 85% of oyster reefs, and South Australia is no exception.”
They report that successful restoration and conservation requires “robust knowledge of ecosystem characteristics and the environmental stressors, to inform better coastal management, restoration targets and important community and other stakeholder support.”
Martin and his colleagues’ investigation, which saw a team of researchers dive deep into centuries of data from the state’s libraries, archives and newspaper articles, offers “a multi-species approach to guide shellfish reef restoration today”.
Through their research, they identified over 140 shellfish reefs in South Australia that used to cover approximately 2630 square kilometres along the coast, 887 of which was native oyster reefs. Unfortunately, most of these reefs no longer exist.
In the past 200 years or so, the combined impacts of destructive fishing practices, changes in marine resource management, and environmental stressors like droughts and disease have contributed to the destruction of shellfish reefs, despite legislative and restoration attempts to reverse the impacts.
Past restoration successes in areas like Port Lincoln and Kangaroo Island in the early 1910s provide valuable lessons for modern restoration efforts.
“These provide important case studies for future restoration efforts”, says Martin.
The study also emphasises the importance of lesser-known species, such as razor clams and hammer oysters, which are vital to supporting healthy, multi-species shellfish reefs. These species have been understudied but could play a key role in future restoration efforts.
Flinders marine biologist Dr. Ryan Baring, a senior author on the paper, adds, “There is a bias towards commercially popular species compared to the distribution and conservation status of our ‘less loved’ shellfish ecosystems.”
This South Australian research highlights the need for ongoing community involvement and research to restore shellfish reefs and safeguard their ecological value.
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