False Creek Oyster Surveys #4 and #5

False Creek Oyster Surveys #4 and #5

Coopers’ Park and David Lam Park, False Creek

Report by Janet Snell and Greg Leach

Two teams of False Creek Oyster Survey volunteers accomplished a great deal over this past weekend (June 17th & 18th) and – by all reports – they had a lot of fun doing it.

Up until now, our citizen science work has been conducted on the south shore of False Creek at Charleson Park and Habitat Island (Olympic Village). This past weekend, we switched our focus to the north shore of False Creek. On Saturday, the first team met in Cooper’s Park and surveyed east from the Cambie Bridge. On Sunday, a second team covered Cooper’s Park west to David Lam Park.

Saturday, June 17th – Coopers’ Park

Cooper’s Park is located east and west of the Cambie Bridge and is the site of the former Sweeney Cooperage (barrel-making) and Sawmill that operated there until 1981. This site is a good example of the former industrial character of False Creek. The Saturday survey was attended by nine people, and we focussed on the shoreline east of the bridge. To start the day, Sheila Byers, marine biologist, gave us a talk about the differences between the Pacific oyster (introduced and most common) and the smaller Olympia oyster (native species and rare). She brought samples to help make the ID even more clear which was very helpful.

We started the survey directly under the bridge where the shore was steep with many unstable small cobbles that made the footing very precarious. The oysters did not seem to like this area and we saw very few there. However, just east of the bridge where the shoreline flattened out, we found many Pacific oysters at the lower sub-tidal level. Here as well, we found a beautiful spiral rock form which was visible also from the bridge. 

Further east, at the base of a concrete wall was an even larger concentration of oysters in a muddy flat area. We spent the next few hours using our smartphones to photograph and upload our observations on the iNaturalist app. Another successful day ended with an additional oyster hotspot to add to our map.

Sunday, June 18th Coopers Park West to David Lam Park

On Sunday, another group of ten enthusiastic oyster surveyors participated in our survey. We were delighted to welcome several new volunteers on both days from WildResearch, a local organization linking people to the conservation science community. (https://wildresearch.ca)

Under cloudy skies, we started at Coopers Park again, but this time headed west along the seawall. The steep slope under the bridge continued with few oysters to be seen. When we reached the Quayside Marina, we were happy to see some more oysters in the small flatter area at the base of the seawall. However, access was not possible, and we left this area to do later with a telephoto lens.

By the time that we walked to the start of David Lam Park, we were feeling a little unsure as to whether we would find many more oysters. The beach slopes were quite steep and with larger boulders, few oysters were being spotted. At the furthest eastern corner of the park, we were gratified to see the densest patch of oyster reef that we have seen so far. Though not as large as some others, this reef was packed with large oysters standing on end like so many vertical sardines in a can. 

From here we surveyed west to the innermost section of the park. A healthy band of oysters could be found all along the shoreline. We continued to log our observations as the tide gradually crept up and we were spotting more oysters below the tideline. It was time to finish after three hours of patient recording. It was another successful day and we celebrated with a group picture to record the moment.

We’re now revising our initial impression about the size of the population of oysters in False Creek. When the project began, most of us had the impression that there were a few isolated oyster beds located at random spots around the Creek. Now, however, we’re beginning to get the impression that the oyster population is distributed widely – i.e., not isolated in a few spots. As our friends in False Creek Friends have been telling us, “False Creek is more alive than many people think!” 

We are already preparing for the next phase of the Oyster Initiative – Quadrat Surveying, to gather more details at specific oyster hotspots. At this point, the plan is to form Quadrat Teams, provide training, acquire the necessary equipment, assign locations, and then get underway. But we are not done with the Citizen Science work; additional iNaturalist survey work will continue around the whole of False Creek.

If you are interested in volunteering, please contact volunteer coordinator, Greg Leach, at greg@naturevancouver.ca.

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