[Lee Stewart]

Around 1900, oysters were so plentiful that their shells were used to pave Pearl Street in New York City (which explains the name); people ate them daily as a cheap source of protein. However, like the sturgeon, they quickly became overfished, to the point where they were considered functionally extinct in the New York harbor and other popular harvesting grounds. Scarcity means higher prices and a higher status so now, instead of being seen as the poor man's beef, they're prized as gourmet foods.