Oysters and Eelgrass: Potential Partners in a High PCO2 Ocean

• Main Authors: Groner, Maya L., Burge, Colleen A., Cox, Ruth, Rivlin, Natalie D., Turner, Mo, Van Alstyne, Kathryn L, Dr., Wyllie-Echeverria, Sandy, Bucci, John, Staudigel, Philip, Friedman, Carolyn S.
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: Western CEDAR 2018
• Subjects: Oysters; Eelgrass; Ocean acidification; Calcifying organisms; Marine Biology; Pacific; Crassostrea gigas; Pacific oyster
• Online Access: https://cedar.wwu.edu/shannonpoint_facpubs/18; https://cedar.wwu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1017&context=shannonpoint_facpubs

Ocean acidification (OA) threatens calcifying organisms such as the Pacific oyster, Crassostrea gigas. In contrast, eelgrass, Zostera marina, can benefit from the increase in available carbon for photosynthesis found at a lower seawater pH. Seagrasses can remove dissolved inorganic carbon from OA environments, creating local daytime pH refugia. Pacific oysters may improve the health of eelgrass by filtering out pathogens such as Labyrinthula zosterae, which causes eelgrass wasting disease (EWD). Using a laboratory experiment, we found that co-culture of eelgrass with oysters reduced the severity of EWD. EWD was also reduced in more acidic waters, which negatively affect oyster growth.