System for improved cultivation of bivalve molluscs

Abstract

A system for cultivating bivalve molluscs, such as clams oysters or mussels on the bottom of the sea floor. There is an on-bottom platform for securing a device. The device may have a first portion such as a cage, box, pen or coop for acting as a reservoir chamber for housing the molluscs, and a second portion which may be a lid operatively connected to the first portion. Clam seeds in a grow bag may be cultured in the system. There is a lifter, such as a gantry or hoist, for lifting and lowering the device or platform structure. Anchorage of the device can be independently adjustable for each device in response to weight distribution over the on-bottom platform, to ensure they are in a level configuration. The platform may be 5-40cm from the bottom. The device may be hexagonal or honeycomb in shape to increase stability. A method of using a cultivation device is where the water salinity is in the range of 2-50ppt is also disclosed. The device may be used in shallow water. Figure 3A