Oysters planted in Miles River

ST. MICHAELS, MD – (AP) Nearly 10 million young oysters have been planted in a protected site in the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem.

The baby oysters -- called spat -- were placed Friday in the Miles River near St. Michaels.

Scientists and state and local officials hope the oysters will mature and reproduce and boost the oyster population. Oysters help clean the bay watershed by filtering the water.

The tiny oysters were raised at the University of Maryland's Horn Point's oyster hatchery in Cambridge. The lab says 350 million oysters have been planted in the Bay and its tributaries this year.