Foreign oysters colonising Britain's coastlines after Government introduced Pacific shellfish to help native stock

<p class="bodytext">Foreign oysters are colonising Britain's coastlines after the Government introduced Pacific shellfish to help native stock, experts have complained.   Pacific oysters, initially introduced to the UK to supplement the shellfish industry following the decline in the native species, have overrun coastlines, threatening the species they aimed to help.  Stocks of native oysters, despite once passing through Billingsgate Fish Market at a rate of millions at the end of the 19th Century, were depleted by over dredging and disease.  To plug the gap, the faster-growing Pacific oysters were imported by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and grown in mesh bags in estuaries around UK shores.</p><iframe width="500" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/RyTSbgp46ZM"/><p class="bodytext">But the jagged shelled molluscs, originally from Japan, are now invading native habitats with popular beaches even becoming too hazardous for owners to walk their dogs on.  “We have seen an explosion in numbers of this invasive species around our coast and it has the potential to radically alter marine ecosystems – and in protected areas of real natural significance,” said Matt Slater, Cornwall Wildlife Trust marine awareness officer. Christine Wood, of the Plymouth based Marine Biological Association said the oyster’s extensive reefs were also impacting the use of beaches “due to their very sharp shells which can cause injuries to paddleboarders”. </p>

<p class="bodytext">Foreign oysters are colonising Britain's coastlines after the Government introduced Pacific shellfish to help native stock, experts have complained.   Pacific oysters, initially introduced to the UK to supplement the shellfish industry following the decline in the native species, have overrun coastlines, threatening the species they aimed to help.  Stocks of native oysters, despite once passing through Billingsgate Fish Market at a rate of millions at the end of the 19th Century, were depleted by over dredging and disease.  To plug the gap, the faster-growing Pacific oysters were imported by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and grown in mesh bags in estuaries around UK shores.</p> <iframe width="500" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/RyTSbgp46ZM"></iframe><p class="bodytext">But the jagged shelled molluscs, originally from Japan, are now invading native habitats with popular beaches even becoming too hazardous for owners to walk their dogs on.  “We have seen an explosion in numbers of this invasive species around our coast and it has the potential to radically alter marine ecosystems – and in protected areas of real natural significance,” said Matt Slater, Cornwall Wildlife Trust marine awareness officer. Christine Wood, of the Plymouth based Marine Biological Association said the oyster’s extensive reefs were also impacting the use of beaches “due to their very sharp shells which can cause injuries to paddleboarders”. </p>

<p>08.10.2019, Belgien, Brüssel: Dimitri Scarlato (r) und Monique Hawkins (l), Mitglieder der Initiative für EU Bürgerrechte "3 Million", sprechen bei einer Sitzung des Ausschusses für konstitutionelle Fragen im Europäischen Parlament. Foto: Virginia Mayo/AP/dpa +++ dpa-Bildfunk +++</p>