Over 100 local school students are engaged in collaborative research on the Herring River and Mayo Creek restoration projects.  At Nauset Regional High School John Portnoy, of Friends of Herring River, presented information to two Advanced Placement Environmental Science classes on the importance of salt marshes, the history and adverse impacts of the dike at the Herring River, and both Herring River and Mayo Creek estuarine  restoration.   A field study was developed by John and Nauset High School teacher, Valerie Bell to see how existing conditions and planned tidal restoration will affect oyster survival and growth.  

Oysters have been placed at various tidal restricted sites in Herring River and Mayo Creek, and at control sites on grants in Wellfleet Bay.  Oysters were weighed and measured in the classroom; numbered and marked as to location in the river and creek; and placed in specially marked mesh bags.  At the same time Jessica MacManus, of Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary, worked with 5th grade students from Wellfleet and Truro Elementary schools.  These students created disks to be placed in each mesh bag announcing that this was a school research project. 

 The high school students and elementary students then came together in the field to further study salt marshes, to hear a talk by Andy Koch, Wellfleet's shellfish warden, and Jake Puffer, a shellfisherman, and to deploy the oysters.  After placing the oysters in their specific location, water quality measurements were taken.   In November the students will come together again to record their oysters'  growth and any mortally.   High school students will describe the study objectives and methods at the Wellfleet Harbor Conference on 8 November at Wellfleet Elementary School, and present the final results at the Cape Cod Natural History Conference in the spring of 2015.