Historical oyster habitat and fisheries in English coastal waters

This dataset collates primary and secondary written sources from government, scientific, maritime and popular media accounts that mention the use and presence of the native oyster, Ostrea edulis, across England, Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. From these sources we extracted locations of oyster habitat and fishery exploitation, and – where available – descriptions of the extent of habitat and timings of decline. Attribution statement: © Environment Agency copyright and/or database right 2022