October 16, 2024 — Bay scallops along Virginia’s Eastern Shore are no longer extinct thanks to a decades-long seagrass restoration project, known to be one of the largest and most successful in the world.
The recent annual population survey shows the density of bay scallops in southern coastal bays has climbed by nearly 0.07 scallops per square meter. But when did the decline of the popular saltwater native actually begin?
Dr. Richard Snyder, Virginia Institute of Marine Science Eastern Shore Laboratory Director and Marine Science Professor, said wild bay scallops disappeared from Virginia in 1932, also marking the last commercial harvest for the scallops in the Commonwealth. The extinction of the population was attributed to a chronic wasting disease that wiped out their critical seagrass habitat.