Across
- 2. Digests algae caught in the gills
- 3. Holds the two halves of the oyster’s shell together
- 10. Over time, pollution, overharvesting, and habitat loss decimated the oyster population.
- 12. Sorts and transfers food from the gills to the digestive tract
- 13. Hard outer covering made of the mineral calcium carbonate that protects the oyster
- 14. Today, oysters are considered a delicacy. But the shellfish were once so common in New York City that even street carts served them.
- 19. The reefs help reduce erosion by blocking waves that can wash away sand and soil.
- 20. Fully underwater
- 21. An oyster is a bivalve mollusk whose shell is made up of two halves connected by a hinge
- 22. tools called calipers to measure the growth of the mollusks.
- 23. ecosystem—a community of organisms interacting with their nonliving environment
- 24. Species Oysters are a keystone species. That means they’re vital to their ecosystem
Down
- 1. According to The Nature Conservancy, 85 percent of the world’s oyster reefs have disappeared. “That makes them one of the most imperiled habitats on our planet,”
- 3. the oyster’s blood
- 4. In the wild, the animals grow on top of one another to form reefs.
- 5. hoisting up a cage that had been submerged in the harbor.
- 6. These filter feeders pump water through their bodies, filtering out algae and bacteria to eat
- 7. Over time, pollution, overharvesting, and habitat loss decimated the oyster population.
- 8. Skin-like covering that protects the oyster’s organs
- 9. The tiny, immature oyster larvae
- 11. Filter oxygen, algae, and particles from the water
- 15. Rising water hat is pushed onto land causing flooding
- 16. Oysters live in shallow waters around the world but now, these reefs have all but vanished.
- 17. Muscle Opens and closes the shell
- 18. habitat loss decimated the oyster population