Oysters are getting smaller and have shrunk by about 50 per cent, according to research. Their size has reduced significantly amid fears over climate change.
The finding is based on shells collected from ancient middens, or mounds, on Florida’s Big Bend coastline, one of the richest ecosystems in the world.
Today’s oysters are much shorter and lighter than centuries ago, reports the Royal Society journal Biology Letters.
This is due to the “complete loss” of prized colossal oysters whose shells are almost 5in long. The biggest prehistoric shell was 7.4in compared with the modern maximum of 4.8in. An analysis of growth rings showed the latter’s development was more than a third slower and their average lifespan of three-and-a-half years was 12 months shorter.
Stephen Hesterberg,
