4 December 2023

Our On Country crew, together with the Victorian Fisheries Authority, have been out on the oyster trial sites over the last few months, installing new posts and tweaking our method for keeping the oysters happy and growing well.

Thanks to Cade and Trey, and Craig at the VFA, for all your efforts.

We took the opportunity to check the oysters’ growth and survival, noting that cold winter waters can impact the survival of Sydney rock oysters in southern waters.

The water temperature in peak winter on the Gippsland Lakes is around 10-11*C which is a tad chilly! The good news is that the oysters all seem okay and still growing nicely.

The spat (baby oysters) that went in the water in January continue to grow, from less than 8mm at installation to now mostly around 40mm+. That is great growth, showing they’re still putting on new shell into winter, which indicates that they are doing well in the Gippsland Lakes.

Our oyster and water quality testing is progressing and the systems are working to get the samples collected and to the laboratories on time and in good condition.

The partnership is happy to report that the trial has been expanded, with three new sites to be added as we work to better understand oyster growth under higher stocking densities, typical of commercial operations.