The oysters are highly esteemed sea food and considered a delicacy in USA, Europe,
Japan etc. In India there is a growing demand for oyster meat in some parts of the
country. It is said that ‘oyster’ is scientifically the best known marine animal. It is one
of the most widely cultivated species. As early as the first century BC the Romans
were the first to develop simple methods of collecting oyster seeds and growing them
for food. The Japanese developed ‘Habitat culture technique.i.e. Culture in nets fixed
to bamboo poles during the seventeenth century and at the turn of the 20th century
they evolved off bottom culture, especially hanging methods. These methods yielded
good results and were adopted by majority of oyster farmers of Japan as the
environmental conditions of the coastal areas were highly favorable for practicing
these methods. Until recently, oyster farming has been considered as a traditional
practice followed only in the temperate countries. The awareness about the vast
potentialities for development of oyster farming in tropics is recent. Serious efforts
are now being directed in its development under tropical conditions
