Oysters are mollusks that grow mainly in the ocean. There are more than fifty species of oysters, some of which are edible. Their rather rectangle shells are made of calcium. The shells protect their soft bodies.
1. Oysters Are Tastier During
Months That Contain “R”
Long ago, people were advised never to eat oysters during months of the year that didn’t contain the letter “r”. For one reason, the lack of proper refrigeration methods didn’t keep oysters well in the warmer weather months- May through August.
2. Oyster Consumption
Another interesting fact about oysters is that nearly two billion pounds of these mollusks are eaten every year, and Americans eat their fair share. From 1990 to 1995, for example, Americans ate about fifty million pounds of these popular mollusks.
3. Is It a Male or Female Oyster?
Just like warm-blooded animals, oysters are either male or female. But, oysters have gonads that generate eggs, as well as sperm. So, oysters have the ability to change their sexes, which they do, at least once. (The gonads, by the way, are considered to be the tastiest part of the oyster.)
4. Oysters Are Healthy for You!
Oysters contain a whole raft of Vitamins, including C, D, B1, B1, B2 and B3.
5. How to Tell If An
Oyster is Alive
Whether you dig them up, buy them at a local seafood store or order them through the mail, there’s one sure way to tell if an oyster is alive. If its shell is open, you tap on it with your fingers, and it snap shut, then it’s alive.
6. Oysters Produce Very
Few Pearls Naturally
Another interesting fact about oysters- According to www.ask.yahoo.com, “only one out of 10,000 animals will produce a pearl in the wild.”
7. Oysters Are What They Eat
This kind of mollusk feeds on plankton, animal waste, decayed plants- most any small particles they suck in. Oysters can filter up to five liters of water each hour. What’s most interesting about this is, that the color of an oysters’ meat depends on what they eat. Usually, the meat is light beige, light gray or off white.
8. Can Oysters Enhance
Your Love Life?
The ancient Romans prized oysters for being aphrodisiacs. The 18th-century lover Casanova, in particular, is said to have eaten fifty oysters for breakfast every morning to make him virile.
An interesting fact about oysters is they do contain a lot of zinc. This mineral- or rather, a deficiency of it- has been linked to male impotency.