Monthly Archives: April 2015
Feds approve fish pots to outsmart opportunistic whales – Dungeness Gear Works is ready to deliver!
Gulf of Alaska whales that dine on hooked black cod are likely to find slimmer pickings in the years ahead. Under a measure approved late Sunday by the NPFMC, fishermen will be free to ditch their longline gear that frequently lose the fish to killer and sperm whales. The fishermen now will be permitted to use pots that trap — rather than hook — the bottom-dwelling fish, and then protect the catch from hungry cetaceans as it’s brought to the surface. Read the rest here, and NPFMC OKs pots to deter whales here 17:32
Irish Trawler Karen dragged backwards ‘by submarine’
Ardglass-based trawler Karen was almost 20 miles off the coast on Wednesday at around 4.20pm when skipper Paul Murphy discovered that his nets had been snagged and it was being dragged. “It happened that quickly, we kept our heads, we kept calm, the crew were straight to the winch to release the wires, so we knew what we had to do. Hats off to the guys, they actually saved the ship, getting to the winch that quickly,” Paul said. Read the rest here 14:08 On 3/21/2014, Fishing boat skipper claims his crew could have drowned after mystery submarine was snared in net off the coast of Outer Hebrides click here
United Fishermen of Alaska re-elect’s Mr. Jerry McCune of Cordova District Fishermen United as President.
United Fishermen of Alaska Announces New Officers and Executive Committee – United Fishermen of Alaska (UFA), the largest statewide commercial fishing industry trade association representing 35 member organizations, announces the re-election of Mr. Jerry McCune of Cordova District Fishermen United as President. Joining President McCune is Mr. Matt Alward of North Pacific Fisheries Association as Vice President, and Ms. Megan O’Neil of Petersburg Vessel Owners Association as a co-PR & Membership Chair. Read the rest here
NOAA touts health of US fish stocks, but not for New England
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration submitted its annual report Wednesday to Congress on the state of all U.S. fishing stocks and did everything but paint a big smiley face on the cover. There was very little to smile about, however, in New England and its Northeast Multispecies fishery, which continue to lead all U.S. regions in the number of damaged or imperiled stocks. Read the rest here 11:46
Main-a-Dieu crabbers set traps after ice delays season
Joe Forgeron is finally set to go fishing. The crab fishery officially opened in fishing areas 23 and 24 on April 1, but heavy ice prevented the Main-a-Dieu resident and the other 115 licence holders and their crews in the region from setting their traps. Until now. Forgeron was planning to hit the water Wednesday. “Oh yeah, I’m excited, for sure. It’s in your blood. It’s hard to sleep this time of year. You get up early and you can’t wait to smell the salt water. Read the rest here 11:13
Cape Porpoise Harbor – A lobstering family
At 17 and 18 years old, Ben and Cooper Nunan are the two youngest siblings in a family of five. They’re also the in Cape Porpoise Harbor where the Nunan family has been fishing for more than a century. Their grandfather, great-grandfather and generations before have kept up a long tradition of making their living from the sea. Read the rest here 10:42
Catch quota may be raised for bluefin tuna, ‘one of the success stories’
The bluefin tuna is on the rebound a decade after it symbolized the failure of international fisheries management. Some scientists and Maine fishermen say the assessment by federal regulators is overdue. U.S. fishery managers announced Wednesday that they are removing bluefin tuna from the list of species subject to overfishing, and plan to recommend to an international body that the catch quota for the U.S. be increased. Read the rest here 10:07
Alaska Board of Fish nominee Robert Ruffner makes his case
OK, we’re all Alaskans and we seem to love a good political fight. We really like to fight about fish. So grab the popcorn for the next round. If you’re following this, then you’ve seen half a dozen editorials, letters to the editor and stories over my nomination to the Alaska Board of Fisheries, all written by someone else. Most recently from an out-of-state individual paid to advance one group’s vision. With a couple days to go before the Legislature makes a decision, you need to hear from the applicant himself. Read the rest here 09:40
Blessing boats for safe endeavors and a good harvest
Every year, in fishing communities along the East Coast of the U.S. and around the world, people gather to watch the annual Blessing of the Fleet. Darien, in McIntosh County, is no exception. Begun in 1968 by then-Mayor Jimmy Williamson to celebrate the commercial fishing industry, this is the 47th year of the event. The event was brought to the U.S. by immigrants who desired to maintain the traditions of their homelands in their new country. Read the rest here 09:29
Pacific Fishery Management Council votes to halt this seasons West Coast sardine fishery as soon as possible
Meeting outside Santa Rosa, California, the Pacific Fishery Management Council voted to halt the current season as early as possible, affecting about 100 fishing boats. The season normally would end June 30. Earlier this week, the council shut down the next sardine season, which was set to begin July 1. The council did not take Wednesday’s decision lightly and understood the pain the closure would impose on the fishing industry, said council member Michele Culver, representing the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. Read the rest here 22:15
Crab and prawn fishing banned in Burrard Inlet in wake of fuel spill
The department of Fisheries and Oceans has banned fishing for shellfish and groundfish in Burrard Inlet in the wake of last week’s fuel spill, and observers are questioning why the federal agency didn’t make that decision sooner. The spokeswoman added there is “no evidence that shellfish and groundfish in the area of the oil spill pose a danger, but due caution is being exercised until sampling results confirm they can be safely consumed.” Read the rest here 21:56
Vinalhaven man pleads guilty to making false distress call to Coast Guard
A Vinalhaven Island man who made a bogus “mayday” call to the Coast Guard last year pretending to be an injured crewman on a fishing boat pleaded guilty Wednesday to a federal charge of making a false distress call. Owen Adair, 23, told the Coast Guard on Sept. 30 that he was aboard the Lila Rose off the coast of Rockland with a serious neck injury, and that he was bleeding badly, Read the rest here 19:09
Alaska – New opportunities for scallops, seine pollock fall flat
Alaska is trying to provide new fishing opportunities inside state waters but the two latest have fallen flat as a flounder. A scallop fishery that reverted to open access this year drew no takers by the April 1 deadline. There were no takers again in the Westward Region for a new seine pollock fishery that opened this month and will continue into June. It’s the second year for the trial fishery permitted by the state Board of Fish. For seiners, Stichert says there have been lots of tire kickers, Audio, Read the rest here 17:45
Group sues to require sea-turtle trap doors in shrimp nets
Oceana also wants the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s fisheries arm to set a limit on the number of sea turtles that may legally be killed each year in Gulf of Mexico shrimp trawls, and to strengthen enforcement. There are some exemptions to rules requiring the devices. Oceana wants exemptions canceled. Shrimpers say they follow the rules and never pull up turtles. Biologists say hundreds of dead sea turtles found after the 2010 oil spill had drowned, probably in shrimp nets. Read the rest here 16:44
Pot Longline Gear Approved for Gulf of Alaska Sablefish IFQ Fishery
Final action reached at the council’s meeting on April 12 includes provisions for identifying tags on the pots, retention of halibut caught incidentally and a review of the effects of this fishery three years after implementation. The council’s action still faces a lengthy regulatory process and is not likely to go into effect until 2017, said Glenn Merrill, head of NOAA Fisheries’ NMFS Alaska Region division of sustainable fisheries. Read the rest here 15:55
Status of Stocks 2014 – Report to Congress – Overfishing and Overfished Numbers Hit All-Time Lows
As a result of the combined efforts of NOAA Fisheries NMFS, the regional fishery management councils, and all our partners, the number of stocks listed as subject to overfishing or overfished continues to decline and is at an all-time low. Check out the infographic below highlighting the progress we’ve made rebuilding stocks and ending overfishing. This progress demonstrates that our science-based approach to determining stock status and managing for sustainability is working. Read the rest here 15:00
Massachusetts: Cod fishing restrictions to remain in place for another year
Federal regulations implemented in November to restrict cod fishing in the Gulf of Maine will remain in place for at least another year, the state Division of Marine Fisheries announced Wednesday.Additionally, the state Division of Marine Fisheries has reduced the commercial trip limit for Gulf of Maine cod from 800 to 200 pounds for all state and federal permit holders fishing in state waters. Read the rest here 14:32
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 84′ Steel Stern Trawler, 500HP Cummins, State and Federal Permits
Specifications, and information and 19 photos of the vessel, click here To see all the boats in this series, Click here 11:56
Lobster industry looks to students for labour shortage
The P.E.I. Fishermen’s Association is in talks with Holland College to design a course for people who want to work on lobster boats. Lobster boat captains are having trouble finding crew. They say many potential workers have moved out west, and others are retiring. Ian MacPherson, executive director of the P.E.I. Fishermen’s Association, said a short Holland College course on lobster boats skills and safety may be particularly appealing to college athletes looking for a job to help them keep in shape. Read the rest here 11:09
Plan advances to map Long Island Sound seabed
A bill that would create the state’s first comprehensive plan for Long Island Sound — and provide ammunition to battle future unwanted uses — is moving through the General Assembly. “This is one of the few times I’ve seen an advisory committee that is balanced between those who are environmentally orientated, the fishing and commercial industry and the boating industry,” Aman said. Read the rest here 10:40
FWC takes up Keys issues: Commercial fishing boats, lobster traps
Loopholes for bogus fishing boats and suspicious crustacean traps may be plugged by state fishing regulators Wednesday and Thursday. Concern about a new breed of stone-crab traps that can double as lobster traps will be among issued pondered by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission at its two-day meeting in Tallahassee. Agency staff will recommend the FWC board move to reduce both the maximum allowable size of stone-crab traps and dimensions of the trap entrance — the “throat” — to discourage crab traps from being used to catch lobster. Read the rest here 10:09
No, global warming is not going to take away your fish and chips
No wonder, then, that when a new study came out yesterday seeming to suggest that the 
due to climate change could threaten stocks of fish like haddock — one of the leading fish components of the dish, along with cod — there was something of a media freakout. “Global warming could make haddock and chips a thing of the past,” blared the UK Mirror. “Fish and chips on the brink of extinction due to warming seas,” added International Business Times. Many other headlines suggested more or less the same. Read the rest here 09:51
Red Snapper scheme could destroy fishery
If this scheme becomes law, it could soon become difficult or impossible to legally buy American Red Snapper. Retailers, restaurants and grocery stores will be simply unable to provide consumers with the genuine American Red Snapper that is increasingly popular across the country. Read the rest here 09:40
Light up the nets! Easy Solution for Shrimpers and Smelt Alike
Along with pink shrimp, their nets often scoop up a threatened smelt called eulachon. Many shrimpers worry that the species’ vulnerability could lead to new federal restrictions on their industry. Now scientists in Oregon seem to have hit upon an effective and low-cost solution: Light up the nets. Last July, fisheries biologists Robert Hannah and Stephen Jones of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and Mark Lomeli of the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission chartered a shrimp trawler for an unusual experiment. Read the rest here 20:56
Carino not buying seals this year
Plunging sardine numbers and a Pew Study spark quick management response?
Fisheries managers have shut down this summer’s West Coast commercial sardine fishing season that begins in July, and this Tuesday, April 14, were considering an emergency shut down of the current season which doesn’t end until June 30. Then on April 13, the council announced that new information called into question whether the current season should also be shut down immediately. The study, funded by Pew Charitable Trusts,,, Read the rest here 19:23
Herring starts today at Kodiak, Togiak’s next; Sitka price info
Kodiak’s roe herring season starts today and unlike other regions, where the fishery is very concentrated and can last less than a week, Kodiak herring can show up in roughly 80 districts around the island well into June. About 3,200 tons will come out of the fishery, taken by 15 to 20 boats. While test fisheries to gauge roe counts are underway at Kodiak, boats and five buyers are also showing up early at Alaska’s largest roe herring fishery at Togiak in Bristol Bay. Read the rest here 17:44
INTERVIEW: Capt. Wild Bill readies for new season of ‘Deadliest Catch’
Deadliest Catch kicks off its 11th season 9 p.m. Tuesday, April 14 with a cutthroat episode that looks at the always treacherous profession of king-crab fishing in the Alaskan Bering Sea. The captains profiled on the show have become household names among reality-TV fans, and one of the most memorable is Capt. Wild Bill Wichrowski.,, Wichrowski said the 11th season will be different because Discovery Channel has “upped the scale of the camera equipment.” So, even though the story lines will be familiar, the visuals should be even more stunning. Read the rest here 17:01
Squid status quo? Fishermen discuss future of livelihood
Squid fisherman Steve Axelsson wants regulators to be proactive and make sure that too many fishermen running out of other species to catch don’t start targeting his livelihood. One concern is that a collapse of ground-fish stocks in New England could lead many to start using their inactive squid permits. David Wiscott, another Port of Cape May fisherman, took the opposite stance. While squid is a major target for Alexsson, Wiscott mostly catches scallops but at times will go after squid. “What about squid vessels that don’t do good and jump back into scallops? I think it’s very unfair and I’m against it,” said Wiscott. Read the rest here 15:48
Maine lobsterman creates revolutionary product with simple tweak – The EZ Block
Lobstering in the Gulf of Maine is tough work. There are a multitude of tasks that cause never ending wear and tear on just about every body part that you could think of, especially in areas like the shoulders, lower back, elbows, and knees. Now, thanks to David Hiltz Jr., of Deer Isle, there’s a new product on the line that could help lobstermen haul their traps more safely and efficiently. Read the rest here Video, 15:02
