Long-line raft culture using bamboo stakes in a bay in Japan.

Distant view of long-line stake culture using bamboo stakes in a bay in Japan.

Rows of bamboo stakes cross the bay holding ropes with oysters growing on them.

Bamboo stake culture of oysters is done close to shore at this Japanese bay.

View of Japanese oyster culture system. Scallop shells on rope are used for spat settlement at this Japanese farm.

Close-up view of Japanese oyster culture on scallop shells attached to ropes held on bamboo stakes. Bay is at low tide.

Long-line oyster culture with larger oysters on the front lines and juvenile spat on scallop shells in the background.

Scallop shells hanging on long-lines with oyster spat attached (small white spots).

View of long-line oyster culture at low tide in Matsushima Bay, Japan.

Algae mat for algae culture in between bamboo stakes used in long-line aquaculture of oysters.

View of mat used for algae culture between oyster culture beds at low tide with mat exposed.

Half-shell oysters showing good size from an aquaculture farm in Japan.

Cultured black Mikimoto pearl at Pearl Island, Japan. Amount in Yen was worth $3,34.00 U.S. dollars in summer of 2003

Cultured white Mikimoto pearl at Pearl Island, Japan Amount in Yen was workth $12,707.17 U.S. in summer of 2003

Giant figure of a pearl with shell outside the Pearl Island store in Japan.

Display unit showing the parts of a black-lipped oyster with pearls.

Machine that shapes the cultured pearl to make it rounder.

Chart indicating various methods for refining cultured pearls.

Technician demonstrating the process of pearl removal from a cultured pearl.

Black- lipOysters which have been retrieved from a pearl farm for pearl harvest.

Petri dishes with various sizes and types of oysters from pearl culture.

Board with dents used to size and sort pearls.

Hand tools used for removing, grading and sizing cultured pearls.

Hanging nets with pearl oysters used in culture in Japan.

Types of hanging nets used in pearl culture in Japan.

Display of handtools and sorting machine used in pearl culture in Japan at Toba Pearl Island where the first pearl culture in the world was developed here by Kokichi Mikimoto in 1893.

Close-up photo of large cultured pearl still in oyster shell.

Ama woman dives into the sea for the cultured pearls at Toba Pearl Island. Other more efficient methods are now used in Japan for retrieving pearls.

Ama womdn dives into the sea for the cultured pearls at Toba Pearl Island. Other more efficient methods are now used in Japan for retrieving pearls.

Ama woman demonstrates how pearl oysters are carried back to the boat.

Uni-directional drill used for drilling holes in cultured pearls for stringing.

Machine used for holding a cultured pearl in preparation for jewelry making.

Equipment for measuring pearls. Japan uses a unique unit of measure which has stood the test of time. A pearl is sized in metrics but the necklace is measured in inches.

Metal tips used in holding a cultured pearl when making jewelry.

Examples of various sized sieves used in screening pearls for sizing and sorting

Examples of nulon, tettron, and silk threads used in the stringing of pearls. Needles for stringing are on the left.

The slotted board used for stringing cultured pearls and measuring the length of the necklace or bracelet.

Strings of cultured pearls ready for export outside of Japan.

Depuration process for food oysters used in Japanese oyster processing plant. Sato Oyster Culture Company Oysters need only 12 to 24 hours for depuration with this process.

Depuration process for food oysters used in Japanese oyster processing plant. Sato Oyster Culture Company Oysters need only 12 to 24 hours for depuration with this process.

Depuration process for food oysters used in Japanese oyster processing plant. Oyster washing machine.

Depuration process for food oysters used in Japanese oyster processing plant. Oyster washing machine.

Cultured scallops at the Sato Oyster Culture Company. Scallops are selectively cultured for their color.

Samples of cultured Crassostrea gigas showing excetional quality. Matoya oysters are prized for live sales and raw half shell consumption.

Density Current Generating System owned by the Fisheries Cooperative Association. This generator takes in dense water from the bottom and mixes it with less dense surface water to create a density current horizontally.

Close up view of density current generating system. This generator takes in dense water from the bottom and mixes it with less dense surface water to create a density current horizontally.

Cultured clams bagged and ready for the Japanese market.

Harvested clams being aerated prior to going to market.

Boats which offload oysters outside the Sato Oyster Culture Company.

Assorted shellfish, finfish and crabs at a Japanese market.