'Reef balls' providing homes for
marine life
Officials pleased with results of effort thus far
By PAMELA WOOD, Staff Writer
Few people ever get to see what goes on below the surface of the
bay, where oysters grow, crabs scuttle and fish dart around.
On a gray, foggy morning last week, a crew from the Chesapeake
Bay Foundation hoisted an innovative part of the bay's underwater
life to the surface to show it off - a holey, concrete "reef ball"
covered in oysters.
Dark and a bit scary-looking from far away, the reef ball hauled up
from the bottom of Eastern Bay is actually prime habitat for all sorts
of underwater critters.
Environmental officials were pleased with the looks of the reef ball,
one of dozens that were planted at the bottom of the bay last fall.
Though they made sure the reef balls were looking good before
inviting a boatload of journalists to the site, officials weren't so sure
what they'd find when they first monitored the site earlier this year.
"The really exciting thing is we didn't entirely know what we were
going to find," said Stephanie Reynolds, a fisheries scientist for the
foundation.
When scientists checked the balls earlier this year - by sending
divers down and hauling reef balls up - they were pleased to find
them covered with healthy oysters, mussels and other critters.
"We saw virtually no dead oysters on any of these," Ms. Reynolds
said.
Reef balls have been a popular restoration project in the Chesapeake....
