Eastern Oyster

Crassostrea virginica

The eastern oyster which is scientifically named Crassostrea virginica is found all over the Atlantic ocean and is also found from the Gulf of St. Lawrence to the gulf of Mexico. The eastern oyster is a coastal organism. An example of a habitat the eastern oyster lives in is the salt marsh. The eastern oysters classification is domain Eukarya, kingdom Animalia, its phylum is Mollusca, and its class is Bivalvia. Its order is Ostreoida, its family is Ostreidae, its genus is Crassostrea, and lastly, its species is Crassostrea virginica. The eastern oyster has bilateral symmetry, it is heterotrophic, and it is also ectothermic. The eastern oyster has an average length of about 10 centimeters and is usually a dull grey color. The eastern oyster has two structural adaptations which are that it has a hard shell so it is harder for predators to eat it. In addition, since they are bivalves and have two shells it protects the oyster from predators. Lastly, it has a behavioral adaptation which is that it colonizes in beds which means it can reproduce easily. An interesting fact about the eastern oyster  is that the oyster larvae are called spat! The predators of an eastern oyster include humans and birds. The prey of an eastern oyster include detritus and algae. I have really enjoyed studying this fascinating organism.    

I found this image at http://learning.ashleyhall.org/course/315577359/updates