Ahab's Journal

UW biologists: New fish species is psychedelica

 

"There are 320 known species of anglerfish, and Ted Pietsch can describe each one down to the number of spines on its dorsal fin.

So, when the picture from Indonesia flopped into his e-mail, his pulse started pounding.

"I pretty much freaked out," the University of Washington fish biologist said.

With its flattened face, undulating stripes and turquoise-rimmed eyes that peer straight ahead, this fish looked like something out of a fever dream — and like nothing Pietsch had ever seen before."

Read "UW biologists: New fish species is psychedelica"

Columbia sea lions go upriver; some may not return

"Sea lion traps are in place on the Columbia River, and on Monday the states of Oregon and Washington will begin trapping and possibly killing animals that follow the spring chinook salmon run to the base of Bonneville Dam in search of an easy meal.

For some sea lions, it could be their last trip up the river.

"Targeted" California sea lions are those who have been seen eating salmon at the dam. Many of the fish are protected by the Endangered Species Act.

The offending sea lions could be shot or killed by lethal injection. They are identified by brands or by other distinguishing markings."

Read "Columbia sea lions go upriver; some may not return"

Fishermen See Disaster in Plan

"Representatives of the New York Ocean and Great Lakes Ecosystem Conservation Council, whose members hail from nine state agencies, presented their draft report before a small audience that included members of the Concerned Citizens of Montauk and the Surfrider Foundation as well as commercial fishermen and their supporters.

Among an array of recommendations in the report were measures to preserve the watershed, protect critical habitats, and institute no-fishing zones."

Read "Fishermen See Disaster in Plan"

NB scallops out of their shell for national exposure

 

"NEW BEDFORD — When the camera zooms in, tighter and tighter, on the Bravo for Foodies channel show "Top Chef" Finale Part 2, a handful of local businessmen can feel their breathing slow, their vision clear, pulse quicken.

There it is in close-up, sharp focus, the object of their intense attention — the midnight-blue, 8-pound can with distinctive white lettering: "Oceans Alive Scallops." "

Read "NB scallops out of their shell for national exposure"

State may give MFC authority to create limited access program

"RALEIGH — The N.C. Legislature is considering two controversial bills that would change how striped bass quotas are handled.

The twin bills intended to protect against over-fishing would give the State Division of Marine Fisheries’ (DMF) Marine Fisheries Commission (MFC) the authority to establish a limited access participation program (LAPP) for striped bass if it so chooses. The measure would impose new restrictions on gear used by commercial fisherman to catch the fish.

Fishermen Head Back to Court to Ban Herring Trawlers From Groundfish Areas

Troubled by agency inaction while bycatch incidents mount, group proceeds with lawsuit

 

PORT CLYDE, MAINE – New England groundfishermen are headed back to court to ban industrial herring trawlers from critical fishing grounds.

 

Represented by the public interest law firm Earthjustice, the Midcoast Fishermen’s Association is proceeding with its lawsuit to evict the high-volume herring ships from areas identified as spawning grounds and sanctuaries for the region’s dwindling groundfish populations.

 

Humpback whale caught in netting off the coast

A humpback whale has become entangled in a lobster pot and netting south of the Rockaways, the Coast Guard announced, and a special team is being assembled to cut it loose on Thursday.

The Coast Guard learned of the trapped animal Wednesday around 12:30 p.m. and set up a 500-yard safety zone around the whale, which was eight miles east of Sandy Hook, N. J., and near active shipping lanes. The Coast Guard Cutter Penobscot Bay and a vessel from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration were on the scene to protect the animal.

Read "Humpback whale caught in netting off the coast"

Bill seeks end to commercial striped bass fishing

"Striped bass have been imperiled in recent times but now their hunters, on the commercial front, are the endangered species.

A bill, numbered (House Docket) HD 245, introduced by state Rep. Matt Patrick of Falmouth on Jan. 14, would prohibit the commercial harvest and sale of striped bass in Massachusetts.

“The spawning stock (females) has declined for three or four years,” Patrick explained. “What I wanted to do is protect the fishery. I don’t think the commercial fishery is economically much of a fishery. Several other states have made it recreational only. That’s something we need to investigate.” "

Read "Bill seeks end to commercial striped bass fishing"

         

Extension of Pelagic Longline Exempted Fishing Permit

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) announces a final decision to issue a one-year extension of Exempted Fishing Permit (EFP) 08-02 to continue scientific research in the East Florida Coast (EFC) and Charleston Bump closed areas.  This action will also increase the area authorized for research in the EFC by 10 nautical miles (nmi) from 79° 40’ to 79° 50’ West Longitude in areas south of 30° North Latitude, and will allow vessels to retain prohibited and undersized species that are dead at haulback for scientific purposes. For more information, please go to the HMS Division website at www.nmfs.noaa.gov/sfa/hms/breaking_news.htm. 

 

Tribute to Hatterasman Nacie Peele

"The first time I saw Nacie Peele was in an oil painting owned by a former employer, Alex Kotarides. Alex owned a waterfowl hunting club where I helped out in the maintenance and guiding chores. The large painting showed him mending a fishing net, and I would stand there transfixed with that image. It evoked a wonderful maritime quality and tranquility. I had heard nothing but good stories about Nacie. Ever since I moved to Hatteras Island, I was amazed at the commercial fishing way of life, and over the years, I’ve worked, using photography to document this vanishing lifestyle," writes Outer Banks photographer Michael Halminski.

Read the rest of Mike's story and view his photographs of Nacie

House Committee on Marine Resources & Aquaculture Meeting

The Committee will meet Wednesday, March 4, 2 pm, in room 425 of the Legislative Office Building. The commitee will consider  HB 106 (Implement Shellfish FMP Recommndations) and HB 108 (Suspension and Revocation of Fishing Licenses).

 

 

Not another fish farm

"Putting a 29-hectare fish farm in Port Mouton Bay would be the equivalent of pumping raw sewage from 10,000 people into the water, says an oceanographer opposed to the proposed aquaculture project.

"Open-net salmon farm technology depends on flushing and new waters carried in and the waste being carried out to sea," Ron Loucks, a member of the Friends of Port Mouton Bay, said Wednesday during a news conference at Province House.

"The fishermen advised us, though, that this area collects debris, which is a sign that it would collect fish farm waste." "

Read "Not another fish farm"

Ancient Atlantic sturgeon needs modern protection, scientists say

"The Atlantic sturgeon has made places such as the Delaware Bay its home since the age of the dinosaurs, but after more than 100 million years, the ancient fish may be running out of time.

The fish is currently a candidate for enlistment under the federal Endangered Species Act. Based on peer-reviewed studies, the National Marine Fisheries Service recommends that the Atlantic sturgeon in the northeastern part of the United States, including those that congregate around New Jersey, be classified as "threatened."  "

Read "Ancient Atlantic sturgeon needs modern protection, scientists say"

BSB testifies on economic fraud before FDA board

"The Better Seafood Bureau (BSB) this week asked the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to make economic integrity a greater priority. BSB secretary Lisa Weddig testified before the FDA Science Board to encourage the federal agency to stamp out the practice of short weighting and species substitution."

Read "BSB testifies on economic fraud before FDA board"

 

A Woods Hole different way to spend your summer

"The Woods Hole Science Aquarium is offering two summer programs for high school students in 2009 – a five-week internship and a two-week seminar devoted to careers in marine science.

Both programs are designed for students who are interested in marine science and marine animals, aquarium operations, and marine education and conservation."

Read "A Woods Hole different way to spend your summer"

What's in Perdue's targets

Governor Perdue's list of potential program eliminations includes NC Sea Grant.

Read "What's in Perdue's targets"

Shifty-Eyed Thieving Fish Caught on Video

"Using remotely piloted robots operating 2,600 feet deep, researchers from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute discovered two surprising aspects of the “barreleye” fish named Macropinna microstoma. They discovered that the fish’s eyes, thought to be fixed in place, actually rotate, allowing them to gaze overhead or switch to a view of what’s in front of them."

Read "Shifty-Eyed Thieving Fish Caught on Video"

 

Fishermen find dead seal in Neuse River

"Gretchen Lovewell, the marine mammal stranding coordinator for the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration in Beaufort, said that upon initial viewing, it appeared to be a young harbor seal, whose native habitat is in the northeast Atlantic Ocean, as far north as Canada.

Lovewell said the harbor seals have been seen in North Carolina waters as their populations increase.

"We get reports of them regularly, so it's not uncommon that they are here," she said. "We don't get them up the river very often, so that was a little perplexing to me."

Read "Fishermen find dead seal in Neuse River"

 

N.B. seafood sector needs to lure new workers

"Rick Williams, a researcher and policy adviser with the Canadian Council of Professional Fish Harvesters, said the industry needs to start focusing on human resources issues and how reforms in training and certification would help make it a more highly skilled and stable profession.

Williams said for the last 25 years the industry has been too focused on the problems surrounding shortages of the product and not the employees.

"Our assumption has been that there's too many fishermen, not enough fish. You know it's an industry that doesn't need to pay attention to its labour supply. I don't think that's true anymore," Williams said.

"If we want to have this industry, if we want to produce the value, if we want those jobs and incomes in rural communities coastal communities [then] we have to start paying attention to how are we going to replace the people who are retiring out of the industry. And how are we going to make the jobs more attractive to young people to come into the industry." "

Read "N.B. seafood sector needs to lure new workers"

 

Locke appointment encouraging for seafood trade

"Former Washington Gov. Gary Locke is in line to be the next U.S. Commerce secretary, which may bode well for the country's seafood industry and its trade relations with China.

Jim Gilmore, public affairs director of the At-sea Processors Association, a Seattle-based organization that represents seven seafood companies that own and operate 19 catcher-processor vessels, is encouraged by word of Locke's nomination.

As governor, Locke "was incredibly responsive and quite cognizant of the fishing and seafood industries' importance to the state's economy," said Gilmore, who dealt with Locke and his staff when he made appointments to the Pacific and North Pacific fishery management councils."  

Read "Locke appointment encouraging for seafood trade"

PUBLIC MEETING SCHEDULED ON MONKFISH LARGE MESH GILL NET PERMIT

MOREHEAD CITY – The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries will hold a public meeting to discuss the monkfish large mesh gill net fishery on Wednesday, March 11, at 7 p.m. at the Roanoke Island Festival Park in Manteo.

 

Marine Dept, SHAB pushing for scalloper apprentice program

"Twenty-five-year-old Caleb Kardell will start scalloping commercially for the first time when the 2009/2010 season opens on Nov. 1.

A Nantucket native with a wife and two young sons, Kardell is a carpenter who plans to dive for scallops along with his building partner to make extra cash during the winter.

Kardell will likely be one of the few new scallopers who begin fishing next season without having been trained through the Marine & Coastal Resources Department's proposed apprentice program.

The Shellfish & Harbor Advisory Board voted last week to recommend that the Board of Selectmen adopt regulations requiring new scallopers to fish with experienced fishermen for 40 days before being allowed to go out by themselves. Apprentices could harvest two bushels per day during their training period."

Read "Marine Dept, SHAB pushing for scalloper apprentice program"

A show of force for 3 Dabs, fillet

"Coast Guard Station Gloucester's flagship, the 110-foot cutter Grand Isle, steamed from its mooring at Jodrey State Fish Pier for another routine day of enforcement activity — looking for violators of byzantine federal fishing regulations.

Sure enough, on this day, Nov. 1, 2006, violations were found — three flounder and a fillet off another flounder that were believed to be illegal."  

Read "A show of force for 3 Dabs, fillet"

Seagrass decline may be a sign of pollution

"PORTLAND — Coastal development and pollution are contributing to the decline of a common seagrass that supports birds, fish and other life along the coast of New England and eastern Canada, scientists said Tuesday.

More than 100 scientists and regulators from the United States and Canada gathered Tuesday morning in Portland for the start of a two-day meeting on the status of the region's eelgrass and how to protect it."

Read "Seagrass decline may be a sign of pollution"

Net profit: Shrimper sets sail for Columbus

"A Mississippi shrimp boat captain, tired of seeing profits and jobs go overseas, is preparing to embark on a mission to educate the public about Mississippi seafood.

Tim Harrison, of Long Beach, is planning on sailing his 62-foot, 65,000-pound shrimping vessel — the Bella Mia — up the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway and docking in Columbus for three months. While he’s in Columbus, Harrison will have fresh shrimp from the Gulf of Mexico shipped to him, and he and his crew will sell them right off the boat."

Read "Net profit: Shrimper sets sail for Columbus"

Judge extends eased regs for fishing

"Reminding federal fishery regulators once again of the need for due process, U.S. District Court Judge Edward Harrington yesterday extended for two weeks his previous ruling that lifted the commercial fishing regulations that count one day at sea as two in fish-rich waters.

The action was another clear slap at the National Marine Fisheries Service, which is in a fierce legal struggle with two states and a broad-based, policy-making council of industry and state officials that advises NMFS and has broken with the agency over regulatory policy."

Read "Judge extends eased regs for fishing"

The Seafood Industry in Alaska's Economy

"Alaska's seafood industry puts more people to work than the tourism, forestry, mining and oil/gas industries combined. Unfortunately, most of the money made in the seafood industry continues to flow Outside.

While Alaska residents account for nearly two-thirds of the fishermen out on the water, Alaskans make up only about one-third of the seafood processing work force. According to the new report "Seafood Industry in Alaska's Economy by Northern Economics of Anchorage," in 2006 nonresident seafood processing workers earned nearly $328 million - 82% - of the $400.2 million paid to that sector. About 56% of the $210 million paid to fishermen went to nonresidents."

Read "The Seafood Industry in Alaska's Economy"

Seal populations continue to explode off New England

"While federal biologists say it’s clear their numbers are ballooning - one estimate places the Gulf of Maine harbor seal population at more than 100,000 - researchers acknowledge they don’t have a solid estimate on how many animals there really are. But they do know there are a lot."

Read "Seal populations continue to explode off New England"

Heads, guts, skin and bones

"Alaskans are taking the lead to derive more jobs and profits from fish byproducts. A conference this week will bring together leading scientists and technologists to share ideas about turning fish wastes into valuable new products.

Alaska’s world-class fisheries produce a lot of leftovers – fish heads, guts, skin, bones and other trimmings. Each year, roughly 1.5 million tons of fish wastes are produced by seafood processing in Alaska, the largest supply in North America."

Read "Heads, guts, skin and bones"

 

PHONE NUMBERS REQUIRED ON FISHING LICENSE APPLICATIONS

MOREHEAD CITY – Don’t be surprised if, come March, the person selling you a fishing license at the bait and tackle shop asks for your phone number – even if he hasn’t in the past.

 

The state is making telephone numbers a mandatory field in the computer program that issues Coastal Recreational Fishing Licenses. License agents will be required to collect and enter the numbers from those purchasing a saltwater recreational fishing license. Up to this point, telephone numbers has been a non-mandatory field on license applications.

 

Mallet mystery solved?

 

"An Australian family visiting a beach near the town of Coffs Harbour found a barnacle-encrusted crab mallet along the shore. They cleaned it off to find the logo of Annapolis Seafood Markets - perplexing, since Annapolis is 10,000 miles away.

Annapolis Seafood Markets is offering a gift certificate to the person who can craft the best story to explain how the Annapolis crab mallet ended up in Australia. Entries will be accepted through the end of the month."

Read "Mallet mystery solved?"

Catch limits under review

"Annual catch limits -- ACLs in the rulemaking abbreviation -- would set a total yearly harvest for a species. When that limit for a sector is reached, fishing would halt.

Many commercial fisheries already operate under a similar system, but recreational and charter fishing currently are regulated by seasons and daily bag limits. Those are in now in full-bore review.

"I have to scratch my head, wondering what numbers they're going to base these ACLs on," said Bill Kelly, the legsilative watchdog for the Islamorada Charter Boat Association."

Read "Catch limits under review"

Don't let DNR off the hook: It's partly to blame in bass poaching

"Sitting in a federal courtroom Thursday, listening to prosecutors outline the cases against five watermen who pleaded guilty to poaching striped bass to supply a black market, was like reviewing an indictment of slipshod work by Department of Natural Resources officials."

Read "Don't let DNR off the hook: It's partly to blame in bass poaching"
 

Fishtown Local

"The Kurkul Circle, it seems, has totally drunk the Kool-Aid. The NMFS staff doesn't get the fact that the public has turned against them on this story — not just the fishing public, but the fair-minded, reading-the-paper public. Even a 15-1 vote by the Fishery Management Council in September against tightening the strangling regulations of Framework 42 was waved away by the Service, because the one negative vote was the one cast by The Commissar — Kurkul.

New England had its own throwdown of the Berlin Wall when Judge Edward Harrington cracked down on NMFS for failing to consider any regulations but the most draconian. Confounding the Commissar, he demanded that NMFS show more than "window dressing" respect for the fishing industry and to give "serious consideration" to allowing the increased fishing of species that have recovered."

Read "Fishtown Local" 

FDA asks lawmakers for more regulatory powers

"The new Food Safety Administration would also absorb part of the Commerce Department’s National Marine Fisheries Service, which runs a seafood inspection program."  

 

Read "FDA asks lawmakers for more regulatory powers"

US Committee Hearings on Offshore Drilling Tues. & Wed.

On Tuesday, the Committee on Natural Resources will hold the second in a three-part series of oversight hearings on offshore drilling during the month of February.  Live and archived video will be available at http://resourcescommittee.house.gov.

Legislators file bills on coastal fishing

"Two state legislators from Eastern North Carolina have filed bills related to coastal fishing, including a controversial effort to change the way striped bass quotas are handed out to commercial fishermen.

The striped bass bill would allow the Division of Marine Fisheries to set quotas on the amount of striped bass an individual fisherman could catch. Fishermen would be allowed to buy or sell their shares to other fishermen."

Read "Legislators file bills on coastal fishing"

Community standards

 

"John Our is part of a new way to tackle overfishing, one that sets a yearly cod quota to be shared by the fishermen in a community and leaves it up to them to decide how much they catch each day.

This is one of the first attempts in the United States to manage a fishery in this manner, and the more than 35 fishermen from Chatham and Harwich who are participating are no longer subject to federal rules that limit the number of days they can catch cod and the amount they can bring to shore for each day they spend at sea."

Read "Community standards"

Program provides local seafood to those in need

"The Midcoast Fishermen's Cooperative and the Island Institute are now providing fresh seafood-shrimp in the winter and groundfish in the summer and fall-to dozens of needy residents of Rockland.

The new program, called Share to Spare, began in late January at the Rockland Area Interfaith Outreach (AIO) Food Pantry. It is made possible by the Oak Foundation."

Read "Program provides local seafood to those in need"

Our Town vs. Exxon

"Exxon assured the residents of Cordova, and the rest of the world, that the largest oil spill in U.S. history was under control. Later, the corporation announced that wildlife, fish and human populations in places like Cordova and Valdez were making a full recovery.

Not One Drop: Betrayal and Courage in the Wake of the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill (Chelsea Green, November) sets the record straight. The real damage, as Ott reveals in her extensively documented, visceral account of pre- and post-spill life in Cordova, extended far beyond legions of dead fish and birds washing up on beaches.

Ott, one of the primary figures willing to stand up to Big Oil before and after the spill, took on a community leadership role that she never envisioned. Retired from fishing and from the “objective” world of science, Ott sought instead to bring a voice to the people of Prince William Sound, whose very way of life stood at the brink of extinction. In the process, she helped to transform the region’s destiny from one of self-implosion to self-actualization.

In These Times spoke with Ott about “invisible losses,” the shift from victim to survivor mode, and the battle against corporate rights."

Read "Our Town vs. Exxon"

 

NE senators protest proposed fishing rules

"BOSTON — Seven New England senators are protesting rules proposed for the upcoming fishing year, and say they won’t allow the National Marine Fisheries Service to "regulate our nation’s first fishery out of existence."

The letter was sent to the federal agency today by both senators in Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Maine, as well as Jeanne Shaheen in New Hampshire."

Read "NE senators protest proposed fishing rules"

NMFS TARGETS FISH AUCTION

"The National Marine Fisheries Service has renewed a longstanding and bitter legal campaign against the Gloucester Seafood Display Auction.

By letter dated last Friday, NMFS informed the Ciulla family that founded and owns the auction — an essential shoreside service for the commercial fishing fleet and the linchpin of the Gloucester's marine industrial economy — it was being fined $335,200 and its license suspended for 120 days for a variety of alleged violations of the fishery regulation act.

The case burst forth to the surprise of the Ciulla family — and permit-holding fishermen identified as the source of the allegedly illegal fish brokered by the auction — who received the letter Monday amid a growing schism between the regulators and the regulated."

 Read "NMFS TARGETS FISH AUCTION"

   

Confirmation Hearing for Lubchenco

On February 12, 2009, the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation heard testimony from Dr. Jane Lubchenco, nominated by the Obama Administration to be Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). An archived Webcast of Dr. Lubchenco's testimony is available online. Her written statement to the Senate Committee is available on the NOAA website.

Gov.’s Lobster Economics Task Force Picks Mass. Consultant

"ELLSWORTH — Following a review of more than a dozen proposals, the Governor’s Task Force on the Economic Sustainability of Maine’s Lobster Industry has chosen the Moseley Group to assist in the development of a comprehensive strategic plan for Maine lobster.

Moseley has had considerable experience with similar efforts to market products often thought of as commodities, through grower’s cooperatives. It has worked with the Colombian Coffee Federation, a cooperative of more than 5,000 coffee farmers, on their Juan Valdez brand and with Ocean Spray, a cranberry grower’s collective."

Read "Gov.’s Lobster Economics Task Force Picks Mass. Consultant"

Canada ponders banning lobster gear to save whales

"Canadian fisheries officials may follow the U.S. in banning a common lobster-trapping system that's been implicated in life-threatening entanglements of the endangered North Atlantic right whale, Canwest News Service has learned."

Read "Canada ponders banning lobster gear to save whales"

 

Dolphins stuck in N.L. bay 'miles' away from open sea

"SEAL COVE, N.L. - Four dolphins trapped by pack ice in a small Newfoundland harbour are further away from open water than previously thought, a scientist with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans said Thursday.

The white-beaked dolphins, trapped in the bay of Seal Cove in western Newfoundland, are about 500 metres away from a small pocket of water, Jack Lawson said."

Read "Dolphins stuck in N.L. bay 'miles' away from open sea"

Swordfish demand up

"SHELBURNE — The worldwide demand for swordfish is growing and more swordfish quota should be made available to fishermen in southwestern Nova Scotia, says the Shelburne MLA.

New Democrat Sterling Belliveau has asked federal fisheries minister Gail Shea to increase the swordfish quota."

Read "Swordfish demand up"

Volunteers, scientists guard endangered whales

"At least 32 new right whale calves -- more than ever recorded -- have been observed this season off the coasts of Georgia and Florida, where the whales migrate to give birth between late November and March. Only about 400 members of the species exist, and the massive mammal is thought to be the most endangered of all the large whales."

Read "Volunteers, scientists guard whales

 

William (Big Bill) Wrighter Responds to Reibel & Gold Egg Foundation

Captain Ahab received this note this morning, forwarded from Manteo:

REBUTTAL OF MR. REIBELS’ FEB. 19^TH LETTER INFERRING EXCESSIVE BUREAUCRACY

     Having served the General Assembly for 33 years (District 121 Alleghony, Watawga), I resent the fact that you imply the longer we meet, the more regulatory harm the Legislature imposes on Industry. 

SeaWeb's Boots accepts White House post

"Mike Boots, who helped bring Seafood Choices Alliance of Silver Spring, Md., to the forefront of the sustainable seafood movement, is leaving the organization's parent company for a position with the Obama administration.

According to a spokesperson at SeaWeb, Boots will be an associate director for land and water ecosystems at the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ). He will assume this new post on March 2, where he will work on a variety of land and water issues including oceans and fisheries." 

Read "SeaWeb's Boots accepts White House post"