I pass on my thanks to Kinger for that scholarly post. I'll follow it up with a little technical data. My research indicates that the culprit was most likely not Lord Salmonella, but rather Viscount Vibrio or The Black Knight of Norwalk.
According to safeoysters.org, the Vibrio vulnificus virus reproduces rapidly when water temperatures are 86°F to 95°F and salinity levels are approximately 0.5% sodium chloride. I couldn’t find a reading for temperatures off of Tainan, (not that I looked that hard) but it seems quite likely they fall within these boundaries. Another possible culprit is the Norwalk virus which is spread through small amounts of human feces. Just to give a little colour to this science talk, here is a list of potential symptoms from consuming oysters infected by Vibrio vulnificus, again provided by safeoysters.org:
fever/chills; nausea; vomiting; diarrhea; sharp drop in blood pressure; painful skin lesions that are initially red, develop into blisters and are sometimes filled with blood, then become necrotic ulcers; septicemia; shock; death
And the Norwalk virus from medterms.com:
abdominal pain, watery diarrhea, nausea and vomiting, possibly with a headache and low-grade fever. Some people also suffer severe cramping or bloody diarrhea,
So to sum up, the next time you order oysters in Taiwan, try deep fried with basil or sautéed into a ketchup drowned omelette.
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