Summer’s coming. On Vinalhaven we’ll find our numbers swelled by four or five fold as tourists of every description descend on us from late May till mid October. While they certainly create congestion where there had been none, and while our capacity, emotionally and in terms of limited resources, is usually tested by Labor Day,
“Lobster Tales” documents where lobsters go in the market
Researchers working in Vinalhaven’s Carver’s Harbor last year were interested in learning more about how lobsters travel. They tagged thousands of lobsters, released them and waited for fishermen to re-catch them and call in their new coordinates. Although most of the lobsters reported didn’t make it far, a couple went as much as ten miles.
Factors in Japan, Russia slow Maine’s urchin business
After the February council meeting harvesters talked about demand, price and weather – other key factors in the health of the industry. Japan’s weak economy and the world-wide availability of urchins have helped keep the price down. Jim Wadsworth, once a buyer primarily of whole urchins, said he is buying a greater percentage of urchins
From the Deck Winter Picnic
Our first winter in Maine was the coldest we have seen so far. The thermometer had scarcely crept above zero for a week, and on Saturday with a brisk Northwest breeze, needlelike crystals of ice formed on the surface of the bay. They drifted down with the wind and piled up on the shore making
Sea urchin news isn’t good
More than 35 sea urchin harvesters, most from Washington County, crowded the Orland Town Hall for a Feb. 13 meeting of the Sea Urchin Zone Council (SUZC) to protect their interests, amid rumors about a possible closure of the fishery in the 2003-2004 season in both Zone 1 and Zone 2. Zone run runs from
Parallel 44 Inefficiency: The lobster’s best friend
For years, marine scientists have been trying to unravel one of the greatest mysteries in American fisheries science: why, despite heavy fishing pressure, have our coast’s lobsters thrived while the stocks of so many other commercial species have collapsed? What has been missing from the federal lobster stock models that could have lead them for
Shortfall brings cuts in DMR budget
For the Department of Marine Resources (DMR), Maine’s $1.1 billion revenue shortfall translates into a $1.9 million cut in the department’s budget for 2003-2004. According to DMR Commis-sioner George Lapointe, a cutback from $10.9 million to $9 million means that programs paid for out of the general fund – the Marine Patrol, and public health
Newfoundland fishermen await cod closure decision
The future of what’s left of Newfoundland’s northern cod fishery remains uncertain as Robert Thibault, Canada’s Minister of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO), mulls over a plan to shut it down. His decision is expected in late March or early April, according to DFO communications advisor Sophie Galarneau. The Fisheries Resource Conservation Council (FRCC), however, has
Tidal envy
The Bay of Fundy has the biggest tides in the world. Everybody knows that, right? After all, thousands of tourists come to see them. But it’s not necessarily true, say scientists at the Canadian Hydrographic Service (CHS), a division of the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans. In response to highest-tide claims by residents around
Financing with heart: One man’s unusual approach made a big difference
“He was a fisherman’s friend … Optimistic … The kind of guy who really makes an impact on people … He’d look you in the eye and never lie to you … He was Mr. Marine Finance … He was very well respected and admired by everyone … He was very social, with an outgoing