The Bidhiinja exhibition at the Port Stephens Visitor Information Centre tells the forgotten history of oyster reefs in New South Wales and the work now underway to restore these important ecosystems. 

Event hours are 9.00 am to 4.00 pm Monday to Friday, 10.00 am to 2.00 pm Saturday and closed on Sunday.

The Tomaree Museum Association is presenting the exhibition, developed by the Australian National Maritime Museum in collaboration with NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI).

Oyster reefs were once a dominant part of our seascape. More than 99% of natural oyster reefs are now considered ‘functionally extinct’ – decimated by a combination of historical overfishing, habitat destruction, catchment clearing and water-quality degradation, land reclamation and disease.

Wild oyster reefs are a complex ecosystem and without them the water is dirtier, fish and crustaceans suffer, and shorelines are less stable. The restoration project is already showing signs of success, filtering nine million litres, or three and a half Olympic-sized swimming pools of water an hour, and supporting increased numbers of fish and invertebrates