So I’m pretty sure I understand how pearls are made, but I only seen videos of the pearl being harvested. So what would happen if the pearl wasn’t harvested. Would the oyster just spit it out or eat it or what?
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Pearls are formed when the mantle tissue (tissue between the shell and “meat”) of a bi-valved mollusc envelops a foreign body such as a parasite or piece of debris (sand, shell, or even an oyster’s [own egg cells!](https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=SzkhMsW7Q14C&oi=fnd&pg=PA273&dq=pearl&ots=583c_HLzu6&sig=-MpohL7rCTrZFQJt_Lg4RgsBOw8#v=onepage&q=pearl&f=false)). The tissue is then covered in calcium carbonate and conchiolin, which are used in the formation of the pearl-owner’s shell. The pearl is shiny because of *Nacre,* the same thing that gives the inner shell its shine! Commercial pearls (farmed) are grown for [2-5 years on average](https://theprettyplaneteer.com/does-removing-the-pearl-kill-the-oyster/), with colder water used at the end to slow the growing process and promote a smoother, brighter pearl.
Sometimes, pearls become “blister pearls,” wherein they grow into the shell. These pearls started as “free”/typical pearls, but grew into the shell after some time. Oysters/etc also get “regular” blisters, which is *like* a pearl, but the nacre layer immediately grows *from the shell* and encompasses the foreign item, as opposed to forming a free pearl that then grows into the shell.
Conjecture: (Of all the info I learned searching for your answer, I couldn’t find an answer from authority on whether or not pearls kill the oyster/etc). In nature, I’d assume, **pearl oysters can survive just fine** as long as the pearl doesn’t grow too large (decades) or cause issues to the shell via blistering. The pearl, after all, is the oyster’s defense mechanism against damage to its inner shell and to parasites that may want to harm it. Larger molluscs sometimes have multiple pearls, since they’ve lived a long while and have lots of meat to protect!
More pearl-bearing oysters die in pearl farms than in nature, for sure.
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