Daily Archives: November 16, 2015
Scientist forecasts drop in coldwater shrimp catches to below 200,000t
A scientist with Norway’s Institute of Marine Research has forecast a poor outlook for coldwater shrimp fishing in the largest fisheries, around the North Atlantic. Firstly, Carsten Hvingel looked to the West Atlantic, describing how coldwater shrimp stocks there have risen (between 1990 and 2002) and then fallen (2002 until now) due to ecosystem shifts. Cod numbers directly and indirectly reflect shrimp populations – in the first instance because they feed on shrimp, and in the second because they reflect wider shifts in things such as water temperatures. Read the rest here 21:38
Approval of GM salmon eggs will be challenged in Canadian court
The Ecology Action Centre and Living Oceans Society have partnered together in challenging Environment Canada’s decision to approve genetically modified Atlantic salmon eggs. The case will be heard in Ottawa’s Federal Court on Tuesday. The environmental groups contend the government agency did not follow its own legislative rules and conduct a full risk assessment before allowing Massachusetts-based biotech firm, AquaBounty Technologies, to produce GM-salmon eggs on Prince Edward Island. Read the rest here 20:19
Coast Guard crew medevacs man near Boothbay Harbor, ME
The Coast Guard medically evacuated a 49-year-old male Monday five miles southeast of Boothbay Harbor, Maine. At approximately 11:30 a.m., watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Northern New England received a radio transmission from a good Samaritan stating a man aboard a 20-foot commercial fishing boat was in and out of consciousness and in need of medical attention. Both a 25-foot Response Boat crew and 47-foot Motor Lifeboat crew launched from Read the rest here 16:26
Virginia Beach fisherman on seeing great white: He could have eaten me like an aspirin
A Virginia Beach fisherman says he had a terrifying encounter with a great white shark last week two miles offshore near Sandbridge. Vince McKaney says the shark was stuck in his net. “I looked back in the boat and I saw this big body surface and a big eyeball,” McKaney said. “Then he opened his mouth, and I seen teeth.” The 35-year commercial fishing veteran said he was in disbelief. “I could have jumped in his mouth he would have eaten me like an aspirin, that’s how big he was. I would have cleared his teeth no problem,”,, Read the rest here 15:51
Symposium offers clues to how lobsters adapt to climate change
While he’s the first to admit predicting the impact of climate change on the lobster population is far from an exact science, Dr. Remy Rochette says some models he works with in a joint project between the University of New Brunswick and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans do offer clues. Rochette was one of the keynote speakers at a Canada-U.S. lobster symposium held recently in Charlottetown focusing on the American lobster in a changing ecosystem. Read the rest here 12:01
3MMI – Dungeness Crab Closures, Future of Seafood in Vietnam? Center of Plate Seafood Trends
After Domoic Acid was found in samples of Dungeness Crab, an indefinite delay in the California Fishery was imposed – this could be good news for the British Columbian Market. Hugh Link of the Oregon Crab Commission does not foresee a need for a delay from the December 1 opening. Yet. The 2015 China Seafood Show wrapped up in Qingdao and Chinese processors have concerns over the future of the seafood markets, but are entertaining the idea of using Vietnam as a processing hub. Watch the 3 Minute Market video here 11:38
Scallop boats scramble for mooring space in Cobscook Bay
Maine’s annual 
is due to start Dec. 1 and fishermen, eager to benefit from strong demand and record high prices, are setting their sights on Cobscook Bay, the most productive scallop fishing area in the state. But, more than any other year in recent memory, many are running into a fairly significant planning obstacle: Where are they going to keep their boats? Eastport, Lubec and Pembroke — all have fewer available places this year for fishermen to tie up their boats overnight than they did a year ago. Read the rest here 09:31
MV Leviathan II tragedy: Official rescue role for First Nations urged
A marine safety expert says coastal First Nations should be given an official role in the province’s search and rescue services. Advocates say the capsizing of whale-watching boat, the MV Leviathan II, off the Tofino coast and the resulting rescue shows how crucial First Nations communities are in emergencies on the water. Two Ahousaht fishermen were the only people who spotted a rocket flare shot off the capsized boat and rushed to the scene, triggering a rescue effort that pulled 21 survivors from frigid B.C. waters. Read the rest here 09:12
Green crab pathogen research raises concern for Nova Scotia lobster industry
New research is raising more concerns about the potential transfer of diseases from the invasive green crab to lobster in Nova Scotia waters. “Our worry is there could be a pathogen transfer and it could damage our lobster industry. We are finding at least two pathogens of concern,” research scientist Fraser Clark says. He adds human health is not at risk. Clark released a study earlier this year showing high levels of a parasite in green crab is being found in areas of southern Nova Scotia where the crab has been introduced as a lobster bait. Read the rest here 08:50
‘Counting Fish’ takes a closer look at UMass Dartmouth team’s fishing industry research
Gentle persuasion might best describe a new 50-minute documentary on fisheries research going on at the UMass Dartmouth School for Marine Science and Technology. Don Cuddy, program director for the Center for Sustainable Fisheries and a Mattapoisett resident, provides the narration, taking the viewer aboard the fishing vessel Liberty in May of 2015 to observe fish survey work. There, one sees footage from eight days at sea, culled from seven hours, of Dr. Kevin Stokesbury of SMAST. He is the researcher who developed the “drop camera” for counting scallops on the sea floor, exposing faulty science, and helped create the highly profitable scallop industry known today. Read the rest here 07:49
