Shellfish aquaculture is a prominent industry in Cape Cod, however it’s origins come from areas such as Asia, Europe, and even Africa. According to one author, evidence was recently discovered that shellfish were a food source for people in South Africa for over 164,000 years (Ristine, 2009). Evidence has also been found to support ancient forms of shellfish farming in Europe and Asia (Brennessel, 2008). Beginning in Europe, observers realized that oyster spat had a tendency to attach to broken pottery, which were often found in the bottoms of the Aegean and Mediterranean Seas. Some fishermen then collected these broken pottery shards covered in oyster spat and transplanted them to areas where they would grow better (Brennessel, 2008).
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Multiple factors contributed to the population decline of wild shellfish, including overharvesting, disease, pollution, and degradation of habitat. Cape Cod was once an area with thriving populations of oysters and shellfish. These copious amounts of shellfish in Cape Cod were considered to be one of “the treasures of the Cape” (Corbett, 1955). Wellfleet Harbor in particular had such an abundance of oysters, that the harbor was once named Port aux Huitres (Port of Oysters) by Samuel de Champlain in 1606 (Brennessel, 2008). While oysters and quahogs were a food source for the native Indians, the population of shellfish was not negatively impacted until European settlement. European settlers used shellfish as a food source as well as bait (Corbett, 1955). The oyster population declined drastically within 150 years of European settlement in the area. While the primary cause of this precipitous decline was overharvesting by the European settlers, it is likely that a diseases or parasites played a crucial role in the final destruction of wild oysters in the 1770s, however there is no confirmation regarding the role of disease or parasites (Corbett,