Daily Archives: September 30, 2014
35,000 walrus come ashore in northwest Alaska
An estimated 35,000 walrus were photographed Saturday about 5 miles north of Point Lay, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.Observers last week saw about 50 carcasses on the beach from animals that may have been killed in a stampede, and the agency was assembly a necropsy team to determine their cause of death. Read the rest here 21:18
Letter: Ludger W. Dochtermann, Bycatch 14-011 (C7) CGOA Trawl Bycatch Management Discussion Paper & CFAs etc.
Secretary Pritzker, Chair Olson and NPFMC members: My name is Ludger W. Dochtermann, owner of the F/V Stormbird and F/V Northpoint. Among the species we fish are Halibut and Sablefish. We tender salmon, as well. 1. I remain steadfastly against the allocation of Groundfisheries Catch Shares in the Gulf of Alaska. 2. I especially oppose the awarding of Bycatch Quotas of Halibut, Salmon and other species. Bycatch quotas are,,, Read the rest here 20:21
NRDC petitions NMFS to list a new (and very endangered) species. Of course they do.
About 50 mysterious baleen whales live in an underwater canyon off the Florida Panhandle, making them the only resident baleen whales, aka great whales, in the Gulf of Mexico. Several other baleen species visit the Gulf, but these 50 leviathans are the only ones known to live there year-round. But new genetic testing suggests the 50 Gulf whales might be a distinct subspecies of Bryde’s — or a new species altogether. If so,,, Read the rest here 19:39
Another hit for the (inshore) Newfoundland shrimp fishery
The total allowable catch for shrimp in the NAFO area this year is about 4,300 tonnes, of which Canada has been allocated 3,580 tonnes. With the loss of this quota in 2015, and possible shrimp quota reductions in fishing areas regulated by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO), an ongoing battle between the inshore and offshore fishery sectors is certain to heat up again. Read the rest here 16:37
A fishing Veteran returns to harbor
Jake Bujacich and Nick Fahey sat in the fo’c’sle (the front underside of a boat, for those unfamiliar with maritime lingo) of the Veteran and tried to count how many of the boats built at the Skansie Ship Building Company are still around today. The answer was somewhat disappointing: Not many. Read the rest here 16:03
Oh WOW, Man. Not the Pot Gardens! – Biologists identify pot gardens as salmon threat
Water use and other actions by the marijuana industry in the Emerald Triangle of Northern California and Southern Oregon are threatening salmon already in danger of extinction, federal biologists said Tuesday. Concerns about the impact of pot farming were raised by the NOAA Fisheries Service in its final recovery plan for coho salmon in the region. The full plan was to be posted on the agency’s website. Read the rest here 15:38
North Carolina DMF treading water on JEA, waiting for approval from top government officials
The state budget, echoing a directive from the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission, gave Dr. Louis Daniel, NCDMF’s executive director, the authority to enter into an Joint Enforcement Agreement with the that would provide the state with an estimated $600,000 per year to allow the marine patrol and NMFS enforcement officers to respond to fisheries violations in either state or federal waters off North Carolina. Read the rest here 14:54
Southeast Alaska dive fisheries open in October
Southeast Alaska commercial dive fishermen are gearing up to start fishing for geoduck clams and sea cucumbers in October. For geoducks, a complicated fishery has become even more so following last year’s Chinese ban on U.S. Pacific coast shellfish. Read the rest here 11:59
Harvesters find possible commercial shrimp stock near Nunavut’s northernmost hamlet
The discovery of those two species, and in such large numbers, has Grise Fiord taking the first steps towards opening a local, inshore fishery. “The excitement in our community is unbelievable,” said Jaypetee Akeeagok, chairman of Iviq Hunter and Trapper Organization, in a Sept. 29 release put out by the Arctic Fishery Alliance. Read the rest here 11:47
Greenland killer whale butchering in photo posted on Facebook
Inuit in eastern Greenland have been hunting more killer whales as climate change leaves the area free of ice longer, says a Dane who recently posted a photo on Facebook of a hunter butchering a whale. Thomas Bilde Below lives in Copenhagen, but travels to Greenland every year. “It doesn’t have the same fishy taste that other whale meats. I think it’s one of the best whale meats I’ve tasted ever,” says Below. Read the rest here 11:18
PEI: Fishermen, processors try to sway Jason Kenney on foreign workers
The Prince Edward Island Fishermen’s Association and Seafood Processors Association spent two hours Sunday with trying to change his mind about the Temporary Foreign Workers Program. The purpose of the meeting was to explain to the minister why they couldn’t find local Islanders to staff their operations. Read the rest here 11:06
Cod threat: Closures, ban in mix
The full New England Fishery Management Council for managing Gulf of Maine cod when it meets this week for the first time since the release of the unscheduled and dire stock assessment that showed the state of the species worsening rather than improving. Read the rest here 09:22
Bigelow Lab in the summer found a record-low growth rate for plankton, a crucial food source.
In recent years, the researchers have measured a fivefold decline in the growth rate of phytoplankton, an indication of lower levels of the critical single-celled plants at the bottom of the marine food chain. Because phytoplankton are food for fish larvae, a lower abundance of phytoplankton could mean lower numbers of adult fish populations years from now, Balch said Based on measurements this year between June and September, however, the growth rate of phytoplankton is on pace to be at the lowest level since 2001. Read the rest here 08:24
