by Katrina Lohan, Smithsonian postdoc
On Friday, we jumped in the boat for a quick ride to a nearby oyster reef just outside the inlet at Wachapreague. Unfortunately for us there was a storm surge of a few feet, so the area that should have been completely exposed at low tide was still mostly underwater. Our boat captain, Edward Smith, took one look around and told us to hurry, as we probably only had one hour to collect all the bivalves we needed.
Edward and two summer interns started to rake for clams, while Michele, Kristy and I headed for oysters and mussels. It was slow going as the water was mucky and the mud was thick. It was a bit of a leg workout!
I collected at one site and then moved on to the next when I heard Michele yell for me that she had cut her leg on an oyster and needed to head back to the boat. She left her collecting bags so Kristy knew where she had been, and she and Kristy switched out at that location. After I had gotten all I needed, I got back to the boat as fast as I could, while still treading slowly and cautiously through the turbid waters. Thankfully, Michele’s cut wasn’t bad and she was able to clean it out with the first aid kit on board. Next time, we are wearing waders!
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