More than a decade of surveys, monitoring, and trial and error has taught the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe and Clallam County Marine Resources Committee (CCMRC) many lessons on Olympia oyster restoration.
The small, briny shellfish are native to the region and a traditional food. They are an important part of the marine ecosystem as they are filter feeders and contribute to the intertidal habitat for crab, juvenile salmon, birds and other marine wildlife.
However, Olympia oyster populations have diminished from overharvest, development and industry impacts on tidelands.
In the late 2000s, the tribe learned that the Puget Sound Restoration Fund (PSRF) had a map of sites where Olympia oysters used to grow, including in Sequim Bay. The tribe partnered with PSRF and CCMRC to start an Olympia oyster restoration project in the bay in 2012, a partnership that continues to this day.
“There were very few Olys on the beach in the beginning,” said Chris Burns, a Jamestown S’Klallam natural resources technician and representative for the tribe on CCMRC. “It took me two tides to find the 80 oysters that were needed for genetic analysis prior to broodstock collection.”
Efforts by the partners to enhance the habitat and introduce oyster seed on the south end of bay have included setting out seeded and unseeded oyster shells, and collecting broodstock. In 2019, the tribe received a grant through the Natural Resources Conservation Service to expand upon the CCMRC-supported restoration sites with 100 cubic yards of blank shell and 100 bags of hatchery-produced seeded cultch.
“We learned early on that the main limiting factor was the lack of settling substrate for juvenile oysters, so we brought in a bunch of blank oyster shell onto the beach,” Burns said.
The partners also found that trying to cover large areas with shell did not work, because they just sunk in the mud, becoming unavailable for juvenile oysters to settle on.
Through surveys, the partners started to dial in what kind of habitat Olympias preferred—wet, seepy substrate with a bit of freshwater influence, Burns said.
The latest efforts have involved placing shell in small piles that hold water longer between tide cycles as the little oysters like to be wet during low tides, he said.
In 2024, the tribe and CCMRC spread 160 cubic yards (75 tons) of blank Pacific oyster shell on the tidelands where Olympia oyster seed could settle. The partners also spread seeded oyster shell in areas considered premium oyster habitat, said Annie Raymond, the tribe’s shellfish biologist.
As restoration has expanded across the bay over the years, so have the surveys with new ground to cover.
“Measuring oyster density gives us a population estimate, and size gives us age demographics, so we can tell if there has been any recent recruitment,” Raymond said. “Finding areas of good habitat and recruitment is the goal, as we want to see recruitment every year. These surveys tell us how restoration is working.”
“This collaborative effort emphasizes not only the restoration of oyster habitats but has fostered a holistic approach to restoring Washington’s only native oyster,” said Rebecca Mahan, habitat manager for Clallam County Department of Community Development.
An Olympia oyster measured on the tidelands of Sequim Bay. Story and photos: Tiffany Royal
