Bay scallop abundance has shot up on Chesapeake Bay thanks to cleaner water, more seagrass and strong restocking efforts, researchers say. (Virginia Inst. Marine Science)

Virginia’s southern coastal bays are coming back to life. For the first time in nearly a century, bay scallops are multiplying in the now clear, grass-filled shallows off the Eastern Shore area in Chesapeake Bay—a sign of cleaner water and healthier habitat that could boost everything from crabs to speckled trout, red drum and stripers along with the tasty shellfish.

Pollution reduction efforts over the last 20 years have contributed to a clearer Chesapeake Bay by targeting the major pollutants that cloud the water: nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment. Through concerted restoration efforts at the head of the bay and in its tributaries under the Chesapeake Clean Water Blueprint, pollutants are being reduced, leading to a cascade of ecological improvements

The recovery gained impetus with a massive eelgrass restoration by William & Mary’s Batten School and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science’s Eastern Shore Laboratory (VIMS-ESL) at Wachapreague. The loss of those underwater meadows to disease in the 1930s wiped out not only scallops but a long list of estuary species that depended on the grass for food and shelter.

Today, more than 10,000 acres of seagrass stretch across South, Cobb, and Burton’s bays—a grassy sprawl comparable to Florida’s Charlotte Harbor in scope. In the lush green cover, researchers are again finding scallops by the handful—something unimaginable just a decade ago. The 2025 VIMS survey counted 0.114 scallops per square meter, densities that match Florida’s threshold for a stable population. At current growth rates, the numbers could double in under 18 months.

“The restoration of bay scallops to their former range represents a major ecological achievement,” says VIMS-ESL Director Richard Snyder. “It means the habitat is functioning again.”

That functioning habitat could translate into better fishing. Eelgrass meadows serve as nurseries for juvenile flounder, seatrout, red drum, and blue crabs—species that thrive in clear, oxygen-rich water. Scallops themselves filter gallons of water a day, helping keep the bays even cleaner. Anglers who remember the murky, algae-laden waters of years past now report seeing the bottom in six or eight feet of water, a remarkable turnaround.

Researchers are counting far more bay scallops than at any time within the last 95 years thanks to water quality improvement combined with restocking. (Virginia Inst. Marine Science)

The project has been a long haul. Since 2009, VIMS-ESL biologists have spawned scallops in their Wachapreague hatchery and seeded them into recovering eelgrass beds. For years the results were mixed. Then, with enough “propagule pressure”—scientist-speak for sheer numbers—the population finally took off.

“When you reach a certain density, natural spawning can sustain itself,” explains assistant director Stacy Krueger-Hadfield. “We think we’ve crossed that threshold.”

The state still has a moratorium on wild harvest, but VIMS scientists are studying how Florida, North Carolina, and Massachusetts manage recreational scallop seasons. Eventually, Virginians may once again be able to wade the bays with a dip net and bucket during an open season—just as families do every summer in the Gulf.

Meanwhile, the benefits for sport fishers may come sooner. Clearer water and spreading seagrass mean stronger nursery grounds, more forage, and richer biodiversity. Grass flats that once held little more than blue crabs are now producing clear conditions ideal for sight-casting to speckled trout and red drum. Some charter captains already note improved catches and healthier fish.

Lab-grown scallops are stocked in the lower bay, further boosting the comeback. (Virginia Inst. Marine Science)

Restoration hasn’t been cheap or easy. Grants from the Army Corps of Engineers, the Campbell Foundation, and Virginia’s Coastal Zone Management Program—plus donations from individuals and a GoFundMe campaign—have kept the small team afloat. Hatchery manager Reba Turner Smith and nursery manager Darian Kelley spend long days tending delicate young scallops that live barely a year and a half, cleaning tanks, monitoring growth, and releasing the survivors into the wild.

Their persistence is paying off. “We’re finally seeing the population approach self-sustaining levels,” says Kelley. “And local growers are starting to look at bay scallops as a new aquaculture product.”

For anglers, that’s good news beyond the plate. Every patch of healthy grass means more baitfish, more shrimp, and more predators. As scallops thrive, the water clears further, fueling a virtuous cycle that can return Virginia’s coastal bays into one of the most productive light-tackle fisheries on the Atlantic seaboard.

The comeback of a small shellfish may not sound like a big deal—but to anyone who loves to fish the flats, it could be the start of a golden era for the Eastern Shore.

— Frank Sargeant
Frankmako1@gbay.com