In 2003, The National Research Council (NRC) recommended five to seven years of research inorder to answer the most basic biological questions about C. ariakensis. Similarly, the 2004 report from the Scientific and Technical Advisory Committee (STAC) also concluded that five years of study would be necessary to tackle the most essential research priorities. In that same year the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the Potomac River Fisheries Commission (PRFC) began funding research on C. ariakensis.

The NOAA Chesapeake Bay Office (NCBO) also initiated a three-year long research program in 2004, funded at $2 million annually, to support the scientific information needs of the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The program is aimed at research priorities identified by the NRC and the STAC, as well as guidance from the International Code of Practice on the Introductions and Transfers of Marine Organisms (ICES Code of Practice) . FY 2006 was the the last year of funding for this program, and final results from all projects are expected by 2007 or early 2008.

Major research topics include:

• Understanding C. ariakensis taxonomy, pathogens, ecology within its native range
• Potential for population growth and sustainability of C. ariakensis in Chesapeake Bay
• Susceptibility of C. ariakensis to known disease causing parasites and pathogens
• Interactions between C. ariakensis and the native oyster
• Human consumption risk
• Potential for C. ariakensis to become a fouling nuisance
• Ecosystem benefits
• Economic and cultural impacts

Funding decisions were made through a rigorous competitive process involving independent technical reviews of each proposal and a final ranking panel comprising representatives from all lead and cooperating agencies for the EIS.

Please click to see a table of all research projects that have been funded to date listed by research topic.

Projects listed by funding source:

• NOAA
• Maryland Department of Natural Resources/Potomac River Fisheries Commission
• Virginia Sea Grant

NCBO conducts quarterly review sessions to facilitate the timely discussion of research results among scientists and managers and speed the transfer of information to the EIS evaluation process. Invitees include scientists conducting research relevant to the oyster EIS and representatives from federal and state agencies and other interested management groups. Results from many NCBO-funded projects have also been presented at professional meetings and published in academic journals. Please see the links below for a list of presentations and publications as well as reports from the quarterly review sessions.

• Compiled list of products (reports, publications, manuscripts in preparation, posters, presentations) that have resulted from NOAA's Non-native Oyster Research Program (updated 8/10/07)
• Spring 2005 Quarterly Review Report
- Various topics:  Understanding Crassostrea ariakensis within its native range, susceptibility to disease-causing parasites and pathogens, human consumption risk, ecology and potential for population growth and sustainability, interactions with native oyster species, potential to become a fouling nuisance, ecosystem services and functions
• Summer 2005 Quarterly Review Report - Aquaculture options Biological and economic factors affecting aquaculture production of native and non-native oysters in the mid-Atlantic
• Fall 2005 Quarterly Review Report - Potential for C. ariakensis-C. virginica interactions:  Larval substrate selection, post-settlement competition, and fertilization interference
• Winter 2006 Quarterly Review Report - Evaluating human health risks:  Uptake, depuration, and post-harvest levels of waterborne human pathogens in C. ariakensis compared with C. virginica
• Spring 2006 Quarterly Review Report - Abstracts from posters and presentations given at the 98th Annual National Shellfisheries Association Meeting. March 26-30, 2006. Monterey, California
• Summer 2006 Quarterly Review Report - Comparative growth and mortality of Crassostrea ariakensis and C. virginica:  Providing additional data for the oyster demographic model
• Fall 2006 Quarterly Review Report - Understanding Crassostrea ariakensis within its native range in Asia
• Winter 2007 Quarterly Review Report - Oyster Pathogens:  Susceptibility and transmission; Effects of harmful algal blooms
• Spring 2007 Quarterly Review Report - Oyster larval behavior and transport
• A compilation of all of the above Quarterly Reports
• Newsletter--Asian Oysters:  Science to Inform Policy Decisions
• Newsletter--Asian Oysters:  Implications for Oyster Disease
• Newsletter--Asian Oysters:  Interactions with Native Oysters

Please also see the NOAA Oyster Library for more information about published literature on C. ariakensis and related links.

The presence of bacteria such as Escherichia coli and Vibrio vulnificus in raw oysters can pose significant human health risks. Researchers at the NOAA Center for Coastal Fisheries and Habitat Research in Beaufort, North Carolina are comparing the rates of bacteria uptake and depuration (a process used to purge pollutants from shellfish) between C.ariakensis and C. virginica. This information will be used to help inform the Environmental Impact Statement being prepared for the proposed introduction of C. ariakensis in to the Chesapeake Bay. A poster recently presented at the Interstate Shellfish Sanitation Conference , as well as the abstract of this project describe this ongoing work in more detail. For more information please contact James Morris (252) 728-8782 or James.Morris@noaa.gov.