Fall and winter mean Oyster Season in the South.
With the humidity lowering and the cool breezes of fall blowing in, there is nothing better than sharing an oyster roast with friends and family. Oysters from Beaufort County are unique in flavor with a salty sweetness unrivaled by oysters from any other area.
Reproduction takes place in the summer months when the water temperature is greater than 68 degrees.
Male and female oysters release reproductive material into the water column, creating free-swimming larvae called spat. This spat will be carried through our waterways by tides and currents looking for a hard substrate to attach itself to. The best thing for spat is to attach to another oyster shell, but they can also fasten on to wood, concrete or other forms of shells. Once the spat has found a suitable clutch, it will develop a full shell within 12-24 hours.
South Carolina Oyster Restoration and Enhancement (SCORE) is a program started by the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) of South Carolina to increase our oyster population.
Volunteers work together to plant clutch material in order to recruit more juvenile oysters. They have also established oyster recycling facilities. Both businesses and individuals deposit used shells, and officials place back out into our waterways.
