Did you know? A single adult oyster can filter pollutants from 50 gallons of water per day! They also provide critical habitat for many critters that live on the bars. A typical oyster bar has at least 15 different invertebrates and small fish that live within the crevasses of the bars. This is why oysters are so important to the health of the Magothy River and the Chesapeake Bay.
MRA is one of the few organizations in the Chesapeake that runs a comprehensive oyster program. The program includes an oyster nursery, reef restoration and dive monitoring.
Due to the collapse of the Key Bridge, oysters from Port Covington Marina that were destined for the reefs surrounding Fort Carroll in the Patapsco River, have been relocated to a sanctuary in the Magothy River. The Magothy Oyster Sanctuary consists of 5 major oyster restoration sites, which include: Chest Neck Point, Ulmstead Point, Rock Point, Dobbins Hill and Persimmon Point. MRA volunteers will begin ferrying out the bushels of oysters from Port Covington to the Rock Point sanctuary in late May.
Last summer the MRA partnered with the Jolly Dolphin in the 4th annual Great Chesapeake Bay Virtual Schooner Race to raise money for the Oyster Restoration Program. We sailed over the finish line in second place, doubling our race goal! However, we still have a long way to go in order to fund restoration of all our reefs.
Please consider donating to our Oyster Restoration Program today! Click on the donate button on our homepage. We are also looking for CORPORATE SPONSORS. For more information on this project please contact president@magothyriver.org. For information on our Corporate Sponsorship Program, please contact Nick Spadaro at nicholas.b.spadaro@gmail.com
Thank you for your support!