Tag Archives: migration
WA crayfish are about to turn in unison and head for deeper waters on ‘whites run’
Millions of crayfish are set to descend into deep waters off WA’s coast this week, in a “unique” migratory march. The annual “whites run” is a natural phenomenon in which juvenile western rock lobsters from Bunbury to Kalbarri moult their red shells, becoming pale and soft. They then turn to exactly 283 degrees north-west and move from shallow coastal reefs to deep water. “And once they get into that loop and current, they turn and walk into the current and they walk northwards.” Dr de Lestang said lobsters tapped into magnetic forces in much the same way as homing pigeons. >click to read< 15:55
Fisheries and Oceans Canada Blunder – Expert says feds should have acted more quickly on right whale migration
Fisheries and Oceans Canada says it has sighted another dead endangered right whale drifting off the Gaspé Peninsula, bringing the total number of deaths in Canadian waters this year to six. The government was still assessing recovery and necropsy options for this sixth whale. The new information late Thursday came as an expert said Canadian officials did not respond quickly enough to this year’s migration of North Atlantic right whales. >click to read< 08:55
Maine fishermen see warning signs in lobster surge
After Maine’s lobster industry set sales records for a second straight year, area fishermen are enjoying the boom while the water is warm. Literally. Rising sea temperatures are benefiting Maine’s iconic crustacean, leading to an increase in population while other marine species, such as soft-shell crabs, have suffered a decline, according to fishermen who spoke at a March 16 Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association panel. But the factors for today’s success may portend tomorrow’s economic and cultural disaster, according to some area fishermen. “We’re going to start going down when it gets warmer,” Maine Lobstermen’s Association President Dave Cousens told the audience at the Frontier Cafe. Cousens was joined by MCFA President Gerry Cushing, of Port Clyde; Chebeague Island fisherman Alex Todd, and lobsterman Steve Train of Long Island. continue reading the story here 11:07
Where oh where are the Chesapeake Bay’s blue crabs going?
The Atlantic blue crab has long been a commercially important species for thousands of water-men in the crab fishery industry in Maryland and Virginia. But ecological damage, over-exploitation and now, migration of the species is cause for alarm.,, In all fairness, this is not the first time this migration northward has occurred. In the 1950s, a similar migration of the blue crab was observed. When the ocean waters returned to their average temperature, the crabs disappeared. Read the rest here 12:46
