Articles
Forecasting lobster molt, settlement would help fishery
A number of local research teams are trying to predict how climate change will impact our local fisheries, so that fishermen and communities that rely on fisheries can be ready to adapt and avoid being caught off guard in the future. Take, for instance, the lobster fishery in Maine. We had an event in 2012
Rethinking our relationship with the ocean…
“Unstable” was the term used to describe the West Antarctic ice sheet by Ohio State University glaciologist John Mercer back in 1968. “Unstoppable” is the term used now. The term refers to irreversible melting of the ice sheet, which is seen as the single largest threat for rapid global sea level rise. A study led
Aquaculture grows to include shellfish, seaweed
Growing shellfish and seaweed along the coast of Maine is becoming more popular. Dana Morse, a marine extension associate for Maine Sea Grant who focuses on shellfish aquaculture, believes the public has had a change of heart on what was a controversial activity. “The overall understanding and acceptance generally of aquaculture and farm-raised seafood has
Marine Protected Areas—do they work?
Marine protected areas (MPAs) are a source of pride, ire and debate in coastal communities the world over. Later this year, NOAA fisheries and the New England Fishery Management Council will make an important decision about MPAs in New England. It has been 16 years since NOAA and the council established fisheries habitat protection areas
Fishing in warmer seas: learning from Tasmania
Tasmania, an Australian island state 150 miles off the southeastern part of the continent, shares some surprising similarities with Maine. It has an important lobster fishery and, like Maine, is categorized as a climate change “hotspot” with waters also warming at a rate well above the global average. The Tasmanian lobster fishery targets the southern
Promising signs of rebound for the mighty halibut
There has been a lot of excitement this spring around the biggest flat fish in the Gulf of Maine. Atlantic halibut—Hippoglossus hippoglossus—is a large, right-eyed flounder found between New York and Labrador. The largest halibut ever recorded was 620 pounds off of Cape Ann, and a 250-pound fish was landed in Bass Harbor last year.
Gulf of Maine uniquely susceptible to ocean acidification
A recent study led by Aleck Wang, a chemical oceanographer from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, has identified the Gulf of Maine as outstanding in an unfortunate way—more susceptible to pressures of ocean acidification than any other region along the eastern seaboard and Gulf of Mexico. Ocean acidification may not be a familiar term for many,
Pen Bay pockmarks as big as the Rose Bowl
The seafloor of Penobscot Bay has been in the news quite a bit lately due to controversy around a proposed dredging project in Searsport. A little-discussed aspect of the dredge proposal is that the Army Corp of Engineers is proposing to deposit the dredge spoils into an expansive cavern on the sea floor in western
Green crabs as lobster bait working in Nova Scotia
It’s a fishing version of the old “If life gives you lemons…” adage. Instead of passively watching invasive green crabs devour native species, fishermen and scientists in Nova Scotia have acted, turning the invader into an asset. At the Maine Green Crab Summit in Orono in December, Chris McCarthy, ecologist with the province’s Kejimkujik National
Can the ‘butterfly effect’ inform fisheries management?
Dr. Les Kaufman, a marine ecologist at Boston University, has been deploying his considerable talents in the service of fisheries science and management for over three decades, but it is in the last year that he has developed an approach that very well may elevate our ability to manage fisheries onto a new level. This