Olympia Oyster

At a glance

Olympia Oyster (Ostrea lurida) is a bivalve mollusk with specific harvest rules tracked in 1 of 66 jurisdictions covered by CatchRules.

Confirmed by 607 research-grade iNaturalist observations, with California, British Columbia, and Washington the top jurisdictions by observation count.

Notable details

• The only oyster species native to the Pacific Coast of North America.
• Small by oyster standards, rarely exceeding 3 inches at maturity.
• Broods larvae inside its shell before releasing them, unlike most commercial oyster species.
• Can alternate between male and female roles in successive spawning seasons.
• Nearly wiped out by overharvesting along much of its range during the late 1800s.

Where Olympia Oyster are seen

• California515 iNat obs
• British Columbia55 iNat obs
• Washington34 iNat obs
• Oregon3 iNat obs

Jurisdictions with rules for Olympia Oyster

• British ColumbiaCanada · official source

Background

Ostrea lurida, common name the Olympia oyster, after Olympia, Washington in the Puget Sound area, is a species of edible oyster, a marine bivalve mollusk in the family Ostreidae. This species occurs on the northern Pacific coast of North America. Over the years the role of this edible species of oyster has been partly displaced by the cultivation of non-native edible oyster species.

Background excerpt adapted from Wikipedia's Olympia Oyster article (CC BY-SA). Visit Wikipedia for the full entry.

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