The Chesapeake Bay could get helped by a new antipollution expert: farmed oysters. For decades, the Chesapeake has been ___1___ by excess nutrients, such as nitrogen, from agricultural and municipal run-off. The nutrients feed algal blooms, which ___2___ the oxygen in the water. And those oxygen-poor waters no longer support the Bay’s rich biodiversity.

The Chesapeake used to be home to wild oysters, but 99 percent of them are gone. The tasty bivalves are known for removing excess phytoplankton from water and ___3___ nutrients in their shells and flesh. So scientists from Virginia Commonwealth University measured the nutrient-chomping potential of the Eastern oyster Crassostrea virginica.

They tested dried tissue and shells from oysters in two aqua-culture sites. Turns out that if a farmed oyster grows to 76 millimeters, it’s a pretty effective ___4___. Eight large-scale oyster farms could clean a ton of nitrogen from the Chesapeake. The study was published in the Journal of Environmental Quality. [Colleen Higgins, Kurt Stephenson and Bonnie Brown, Nutrient Bioassimilation Capacity of Aquacultured Oysters: Quantification of an Ecosystem Service]

Such farming won’t make the bay ___5___ again, but the researchers say the oysters are effective at cleaning the area where they’re grown. And so for a biologically better Chesapeake, pass the hot sauce.
【视听版科学小组荣誉出品】
plagued suck up sequestering water filter pristine
切萨皮克湾救星降临：新防污能手——养殖牡蛎。几十年来，氮肥等随农业和城市径流注入切萨皮克湾，致使其水质富营养化，进而使得海湾中藻类疯长，水中的氧气吸收殆尽，从而导致海湾生物多样性遭到破坏。 切萨皮克湾曾是野生牡蛎的聚居地，但如今99%的牡蛎已经另觅居所。鲜美的牡蛎能够将疯长的浮游植物“驱逐”出水域，并将水中过多的养分“收押”到自己体内。弗吉尼亚州立邦联大学的科学家们对东岸牡蛎吸收水中养分的能力进行了测试。 科学家们对两个水产养殖地的牡蛎的干燥组织及牡蛎壳进行了测试。结果发现，养殖牡蛎长到76毫米长时就是一个绝佳的水质净化器。8个大型牡蛎养殖场养殖的牡蛎能够帮助处理切萨皮克湾中一吨的氮肥。这项研究报告发表在《环境质量杂志》上。 牡蛎养殖虽无法帮助切萨皮克湾完全恢复原貌，但科学家们表示牡蛎能够帮助净化当地水质。所以，为了切萨皮克湾能拥有一个良好的生态环境，上辣酱——吃牡蛎~