Tag Archives: Heterosiphonia japonica
No profits found in this tangled catch – Fishermen taking a beating!
Local fishermen this year have had a tough time with a species of red seaweed, an algae, that looks like matted hair. The algae began to bloom and spread in May. Nets would get fouled – often beyond recognition – and the fishermen would spend hours cleaning them, only to have their nets get “weeded up” on the very next tide. And to add insult to injury, when the weed was thickest, covering acres of the seabed, the nets would often be empty of fish. Read the rest here 13:23
Invasive seaweed spreads along New England coast
As it continues to proliferate, Heterosiphonia japonica can create problems for Maine lobstermen as it has for lobstermen in Massachusetts. Last spring, the plant clung to the sides of Skip Ryan’s gear and clogged his traps to the point where he was forced to move his traps from inner Boston Harbor into deeper waters, where the seaweed wasn’t so bad. When Ryan reached inside the traps to remove the seaweed, it would break apart in his fingers, creating a nasty mess. Some of his traps became so weighted down with the stuff that it was hard for him to pull them aboard. “It gets all over the ground line, it’s all over the wheelhouse of the boat, it’s all over the pot hauler,” he said. “The stuff is horrendous.” Some are concerned the seaweed could squeeze out native varieties and smother sea grass beds, which serve as important nursery grounds for fish, lobsters and other marine species. Read More
