Daily Archives: July 25, 2019
Norway Battling ‘Russian Invasion’ of Salmon, Fishermen Urged to Kill ‘Occupiers’
Norway is facing an invasion of humpback salmon, informally known as “Russian salmon”, Norwegian researchers have warned. According to them, the intrusion is gaining momentum, and Norway is yet to see the worst of it. According to locals and researchers alike, the much-dreaded “invasion” may turn into a prolonged “occupation”. Elevated populations of the humpback salmon, which is the invader’s official name,,, >click to read< 20:40
Fishermen volunteer to become 2nd right whale rescue team
Ferron is one of three crab fishermen who volunteered to form a new rescue team based in Shippagan. He, Martin Noël and Rémi Guignard have been training since last winter. The objective is to eventually have a boat to respond quickly to disentanglement calls in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.,,, Jean Lanteigne, director of the Regional Acadian Federation of Professional Fishermen, said the Campobello Whale Rescue team first approached the fishermen to see if anyone was interested in volunteering. Fifteen fishermen showed up for the information session, but three had the time to commit to the training schedule. >click to read< 17:18
The 2020-2021 Scallop RSA Competition is underway; the Project Proposal Deadline is September 20th!
The federal competition for 2020-2021 awards through the Scallop Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program is now open. The deadline for submitting full proposals is Friday, September 20, 2019 at 5 p.m. The New England Fishery Management Council established the Scallop RSA Program under the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan. The Council sets research priorities for this program, while the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS/NOAA Fisheries) administers the RSA competition, oversees award projects, and monitors set-aside harvest activities through the Northeast Fisheries Science Center and Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office (GARFO). >click to read< 16:27
Connecticut – The 66th Annual Blessing Of The Fleet Is Coming To Stonington Borough Sunday
The 66th annual Blessing of the Fleet will take place beginning at 10:30 a.m. Sunday, July 28, at St. Mary Church in Stonington Borough to honor and remember those who have died at sea on our local commercial fishing fleet, as well as to honor and bless the vessels–along with their captains, owners, crews and families–that will go out to sea in the year ahead. >click to read< 15:15
California coasts recovering, but more marine heatwaves like ‘The Blob’ expected
The effects of the marine heatwave off the California coast from 2014 to 2016, better known as The Blob, that led to a decrease in Chinook salmon and virtually shut down the Dungeness crab industry are finally starting to wear off.,,, “It wasn’t about (a lack of) abundance,” said Noah Oppenheim, executive director of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations. “It was about destabilized ecosystems.” >click to read< 10:50
7-foot mako shark tagged off Texas reappears off North Carolina’s Outer Banks
A 7-foot-5-inch-long mako shark tagged last year off Texas appeared Wednesday morning off North Carolina’s Outer Banks. His tracker pinged at 7:48 a.m. in the waters off Hatteras, a popular tourist area on the Cape Hatteras National Seashore,,, The shark has traveled more than 14,400 miles in 16 months, at times at speeds of up to 100 miles a day, researchers say.,,, “He’s the first mako we’ve tracked out of the Gulf of Mexico and into the Atlantic,” the organization tweeted. >click to read< 10:20
Bristol Bay sockeye harvest blowing away forecast once again
Bristol Bay is approaching the record for sockeye salmon harvest once again. As of July 21, fishermen in Bristol Bay’s five districts had harvested just more than 42 million salmon. More than 41.5 million of those were sockeye, according to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game; that’s already more than the 41.3 million sockeye harvested in 2018, the second-largest harvest on record. The largest harvest on record, which occurred in 1995, still stands at 44.2 million sockeye. >click to read< 09:40
Right whale discussion must not be trapped in political posturing
The state’s recent decision to buck the federal government, and to pursue its own assessment of the risk to right whales from lobster trap lines in the water, is warranted. Science, not politics, needs to guide this effort.,,, We’ve seen on the West Coast how legal pressure from environmental groups can close entire fisheries early, as it did for California crab this year. That does not mean Maine should roll over on the proposed federal regulations without science demonstrating that new regulations would be commensurate with the actual risk to whales posed by trap lines in Maine waters. >click to read< 08:28