Volunteers needed to harvest Little Lagoon oysters

Volunteers needed to harvest Little Lagoon oysters

The Little Lagoon Preservation Society is poised to complete another successful season of oyster gardening this month, and volunteers are being solicited to harvest the oysters from cages hanging from docks of homeowners along Little Lagoon.
Volunteers will gather, count, and measure the oysters on Monday, Oct.14 from 9 a.m. until noon. The harvested oysters are destined for protected renourishment reefs in Mobile Bay. For more info or to volunteer, email lloystergarden ing@gmail.com.
There are 57 gardens at 47 sites this year, including 16 cages that are being maintained by students of nationally recognized Gulf Shores High School teacher Krista Marcum.
“Classes are conducted out on the dock, where students do the work of shaking and cleaning the cages, removing predators, and gathering data while learning about all the other sea creatures making a home in the oyster habitat,’’ said LLPS President Dennis Hatfield. “Krista is raising the next generation of environmentalists along with a bumper crop of oysters. We appreciate these rock star students who are giving back even more than they are gaining.
“These past few weeks of extreme heat and rapid growth have been a challenge for us all,’’ Hatfield added. “But know that we appreciate the tremendous contributions to this effort to improve Little Lagoon.’’
Pictured: LLPS President Dennis Hatfield presents Mrs. Lois McDonald, one of the original oyster gardening volunteers, with an “Oyster Retirement” momento in appreciation for her many years of sticking with the program through hurricanes and dock re-builds. “This dear lady will be stepping back from tending cages at season’s end, but she will graciously allow her dock to be used as a host site for a new volunteer,’’ Hatfield said.