Latest news with #Bonamiaexitiosa
Otago Daily Times
30-06-2025
- General
- Otago Daily Times
Season ends early to give baby oysters ‘best chance'
Barnes Wild Bluff Oysters staffer Roger Matahaere shucks hundreds of oysters for the hordes of Bluff Oyster Festival-goers earlier this year. PHOTO: ODT FILES Barnes Wild Bluff Oysters will wrap up its oyster season this Friday — nearly two months earlier than usual — in a move aimed at protecting millions of juvenile oysters discovered in Foveaux Strait. The Bluff oyster season typically runs from March 1 to August 31, but the company has chosen to finish early after harvesting only about half of its allocated quota. Barnes Wild holds about 60% of the 7.5million Bluff oyster quota. General manager Graeme Wright said the decision was influenced by both environmental and sustainability concerns. "There are millions of baby Bluff oysters out there. "It's one of the biggest reasons we've decided to stop early — we want to give them the best chance to grow and strengthen the wild fishery." The season had been difficult on several fronts, Mr Wright said. Unfavourable weather conditions and inconsistent oyster quality further complicated operations. The presence of oyster larvae on the backs of the adults caught showed the oysters were reproducing well but this also contributed to the supply problem. About 90% of oyster larvae attach themselves to the shell of an adult and one oyster could carry up to 70 larvae, he said. During the process of sorting the catch at sea, any oysters with larvae on board were thrown back. This year "huge amounts" had been returned to the sea. Records showed there were sometimes gaps of between six and eight years where there was little or no reproduction. "All of a sudden it's game on and ... we're seeing millions of little baby oysters everywhere. "Things for the future look really positive." It took between six and nine years for oysters to reach maturity, Mr Wright said. It was hard to know why the oysters were in poorer condition, but it could be because they were reproducing, their plankton food supply was not as plentiful or the increased presence of the parasite Bonamia exitiosa. The history of the fishery showed the oyster harvest was cyclic. "It's a wild fishery. "It has its ups and downs." While it was not an easy decision to make it was a sensible thing to do, he said.
Otago Daily Times
16-05-2025
- Health
- Otago Daily Times
Oyster season ‘slightly behind'
Shuckers at Barnes Wild Bluff Oyster shuckers have had a slow few weeks. PHOTO: ODT FILES Bouts of bad weather and poor-quality shellfish mean this year's oyster season has some catching up to do, a long-term industry supplier says. Barnes Wild Bluff Oysters manager Graeme Wright said every wild fishery experienced up and downs, but so far, 2025 had been a difficult season. "Overall the industry is probably slightly behind — the bulk of that's due to weather." The industry, with the help of the Ministry of Fisheries, undertook a survey before the season started to assess sustainability and disease status. Foveaux Strait oysters were closely monitored for signs of the Bonamia exitiosa parasite which caused high mortality in the wild fishery beds. The strain was different from the B. ostreae strain found at Big Glory Bay about 2017. "There's no other fishery in New Zealand that [surveys] happen like that. "So it's a very well-monitored and managed fishery. In the past, the industry had been closed for consecutive years to recover from a disease which killed about 92% of the oyster population. He expected the latest survey would reveal an increase in the prevalence of B. exitiosa again. He believed fast-moving water through the strait provided a unique environment which might prevent many diseases from becoming established. "The guys are seeing some mortality out there" but that was not unusual. While the disease's presence was more cyclical other factors such as food supply could also impact the shellfish's quality and quantity. "It almost appears like there's just not a lot of food around for the oysters. "But we don't really understand what drives those sorts of process. "But the industry certainly acknowledges that the quality is not good and we're seeing catch rates slip back a little bit." "On the positive side, we're seeing millions and millions of little baby oysters, so there's been pretty good recruitment." The season normally runs from March to the end of August each year and depending on the harvest level, boats can finish early — some Bluff boats have almost filled their 2025 quota. — Toni McDonald
