Science

April 11, 2013 — New research on harmful algal blooms or “red tide” and at-sea and dockside testing protocols funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will allow for fishermen to harvest ocean quahogs and surf clams on Georges Bank for the first time in more than 20 years, announced the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution on Wednesday.

 It is estimated the Georges Bank fishery can produce up to 1 million bushels of surf clams and ocean quahogs a year, valued $10 – 15 million annually.

“There is a billion dollars’ worth of shellfish product on Georges Bank that is property of the United States but that can't be harvested because of the threat of toxicity, and 99.9% of the time, it is good wholesome product,” said Dave Wallace of North Atlantic Clam Association in a statement released by WHOI.

Read the full story at Falmouth Patch

 

 

April 9, 2013 — Ancient, blackened shells found on Assateague Island, the barrier island separating Sinepuxent and Chincoteague Bays from the Atlantic Ocean, as well as those collected throughout the bays during Maryland Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) hard clam surveys, provide ample evidence that bay scallops have inhabited this region from time to time.

The Maryland coastal bays are a series of interconnected shallow lagoons extending along the entire Atlantic coast of the state and linked to the ocean by two narrow inlets (Figure 1). In the past, bay scallops in these bays have occurred episodically, tied to the ephemeral openings of inlets and the resultant changes in the salinity regimes and habitat in this lagoonal system. Ancient, blackened shells found on Assateague Island, the barrier island separating Sinepuxent and Chincoteague Bays from the Atlantic Ocean, as well as those collected throughout the bays during Maryland Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) hard clam surveys, provide ample evidence that bay scallops have inhabited this region from time to time.

Unlike oysters and hard clams, which have commercial landing statistics and anecdotal information about them from this region dating to the mid-19th century, records on bay scallops prior to the 1900's are not found in period publications (Earll 1887; Ingersoll 1881, 1887; Murphy 1960). However, their presence or absence may be inferred from accounts of inlets. While no inlets existed in the northern bays during the latter half of the 1800's, a series of inlets opened and closed in Chincoteague and lower Sinepuxent Bays (Truitt 1968; Counts & Bashore 1991). The last of these transient inlets, Green Run Inlet in mid-Chincoteague Bay, existed for about 20 years (Truitt & Les Callette 1977) and probably provided adequate salinity for bay scallops. After it closed by the 1880's, the coastal bays were left with only one opening to the ocean, at Chincoteague, Virginia – the southern extreme of the system. Consequently, salinities dropped to the point that oysters, and by inference bay scallops, could not be supported north of Chincoteague Bay (Grave 1912). Nevertheless, the Virginia portion of Chincoteague Bay, in close proximity to the inlet, maintained higher salinities along with lush eelgrass (Zostera marina) meadows inhabited by bay scallops (Henderson & Bartsch 1914). A lucrative bay scallop fishery (1.4 million pounds landed in 1930) developed during the 1920's, based around Chincoteague Island, Virginia (Fieldler 1931; Gutsell 1930). Due to the steep salinity gradient in Chincoteague Bay, the scallop population in Maryland likely was small and restricted to just above the Virginia state line. There were no reported landings in Maryland during this period (Fieldler 1931, 1932, 1933).

Read the full story at the Maryland Department of Natural Resources

April 2, 2013 — People aged 65 and older who eat fish may live an average of two years longer than people who do not consume the omega-3 fatty acids found mainly in seafood, a US study suggested on Monday.

People with higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids also had an overall risk of dying that was 27 percent lower, and a risk of dying from heart disease that was 35 percent lower than counterparts who had lower blood levels, said the study.

The research was led by scientists at the Harvard School of Public Health and was published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

While other studies have demonstrated a link between omega-3 fatty acids and lower risk of heart disease, this research examined records of older people to determine any link between fish-eating and death risk.

Researchers scanned 16 years of data on about 2,700 US adults aged 65 or older. Those considered for the study were not taking fish oil supplements, to eliminate any confusion over the use of supplements or dietary differences.

Those with the highest blood levels of omega-3 fatty acids found mainly in fish like salmon, tuna, halibut, sardines, herring and mackerel, had the lowest risk of dying from any cause, and lived an average of 2.2 years longer than those with low levels.

Read the full story at the Daily Telegraph

 

 

April 2, 2013 — Long-chain ω-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (ω3-PUFAs), including eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) (20:5ω-3), docosapentaenoic acid (DPA) (22:5ω-3), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) (22:6ω-3), have been shown to reduce cardiovascular risk, but effects on cause-specific and total mortality and potential dose-responses remain controversial.

Most observational studies have assessed self-reported dietary intake and most randomized trials have tested effects of adding supplements to dietary intake and evaluated secondary prevention, thus limiting inference for dietary ω3-PUFAs or primary prevention.

Read the full study at The American College of Physicians 

March 30, 2013 — Climate change may be happening more slowly than scientists thought. But the world still needs to deal with it.

It may come as a surprise to a walrus wondering where all the Arctic’s summer sea ice has gone. It could be news to a Staten Islander still coming to terms with what he lost to Hurricane Sandy. But some scientists are arguing that man-made climate change is not quite so bad a threat as it appeared to be a few years ago. They point to various reasons for thinking that the planet’s “climate sensitivity”—the amount of warming that can be expected for a doubling in the carbon-dioxide level—may not be as high as was previously thought. The most obvious reason is that, despite a marked warming over the course of the 20th century, temperatures have not really risen over the past ten years.

It is not clear why climate change has “plateaued” (see article). It could be because of greater natural variability in the climate, because clouds dampen warming or because of some other little-understood mechanism in the almost infinitely complex climate system. But whatever the reason, some of the really ghastly scenarios—where the planet heated up by 4°C or more this century—are coming to look mercifully unlikely. Does that mean the world no longer has to worry?

No, for two reasons. The first is uncertainty. The science that points towards a sensitivity lower than models have previously predicted is still tentative. The error bars are still there. The risk of severe warming—an increase of 3°C, say—though diminished, remains real. There is also uncertainty over what that warming will actually do to the planet. The sharp reduction in Arctic ice is not something scientists expected would happen at today’s temperatures. What other effects of even modest temperature rise remain unknown?

The second reason is more practical. If the world had based its climate policies on previous predictions of a high sensitivity, then there would be a case for relaxing those policies, now that the most hell-on-Earth-ish changes look less likely. But although climate rhetoric has been based on fears of high sensitivity, climate policy has not been. On carbon emissions and on adaptation to protect the vulnerable it has fallen far short of what would be needed even in a low-sensitivity world. Industrial carbon-dioxide emissions have risen by 50% since 1997.

Read the full story at The Economist

March 29, 2013 — Apocalyptic temperature rises in the very near future may be less likely but policy makers still need to do more, say The Economist's correspondents. Watch the video at The Economist

 

CONCORD, N.H.,– April 2, 2013 — Restoring New Hampshire's native brook trout habitat is the subject of a free talk Wednesday night at Fish and Game headquarters.

Fisheries biologist John Magee will lead the discussion, which begins at 7 p.m.

Eastern brook trout are one of New Hampshire's most prized native fish. But, they are threatened by development, changing climate and pollution.

Magee has been working for years on the issue. Come hear what the department is doing to restore habitat for the "brookies" and perhaps add your own ideas.

The talk is part of a month-long series of free Outdoor Adventure Talks, all offered at 11 Hazen Dr. in Concord.

Read the full story at the local New Hampshire news station WMUR

 

 

REEDVILLE, Va., — April 1, 2013 — A new scientific study released February 1 on the status of menhaden along the Atlantic coast has resulted in more questions than answers on whether the species are overfished—a claim that led to a decision last December by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) to slash the allowable catch by 20%.

The new restriction forced Omega Protein of Reedville, one of the area’s largest employers with a $15 million payroll, to cut two fishing vessels and 50 positions, according to the company’s director of fishing operations, Monty Diehl.

Was the ASMFC decision to impose restrictions too hasty?

During the December meeting, it was the contention of a majority of commission members that menhaden are being overfished while other members questioned the reliability of the data being used. They asked the commission not to rush into imposing restrictions but to wait for a thorough study.

“The commission was under a great deal of pressure from sport fishing and environmentalists,” said Diehl. But the truth is, only a 2008 study showed overfishing, and by just 0.4%, while subsequent studies have been erratic, he said.

The February 1 report by ASMFC’s Technical Committee questioned if current methods of measuring menhaden stock are reliable based on the fact that only one major fishery, Omega Protein, remains on the East Coast.

“The Technical Committee said, ‘We do not trust our model. We need to develop a new model,’” said Diehl. The committee did several sensitivity studies in January, one showing the stock is overfished while a newer study model shows it was not. “Scientists are saying ‘We can’t say that its overfished.’ This should bring into question if the (ASMFC) board members knew then what they know now, would they have made a 10% cut rather than 20%? There is a huge difference between the two models,” Diehl noted.

Read the full story at The Rappahannock Record

 

GLOUCESTER, Mass. — March 30, 2013 — Tagging studies, underwater videos and recordings of cod vocalizations — could provide a crucial answer to bringing this iconic fish stock back to healthy population levels by protecting them as they reproduce.

Five years ago, a state fisheries employee was on a busman's holiday: fishing in 170 feet of water near a small gravel sandbar 3 miles east of Gloucester, happily hauling up one large cod after another.

He had discovered the epicenter of a mass of spawning cod, possibly 30,000 fish, that returned to this spot every spring.

State fisheries scientists realized this was a unique opportunity to observe spawning cod in the wild so, in 2009, they set up an underwater laboratory at the site.

What they have since found — through tagging studies, underwater videos and recordings of cod vocalizations — could provide a crucial answer to bringing this iconic fish stock back to healthy population levels by protecting them as they reproduce.

"Killing them where they spawn is a great way to drive a species to extinction," said Sofie Van Parijs, the passive acoustics program director with the Northeast Fisheries Science Center in Woods Hole.

Cod stocks haven't been doing well, despite nearly two decades of the most restrictive fishing regulations in the country. Those regulations have traditionally been driven by the theory that fishing limits allow more fish to survive and reproduce, increasing stocks over time.

But that logic has largely failed cod. The population remains at less than 20 percent of where scientists believe it should be after a nearly 20-year effort to revive them. Fishermen face up to 77 percent cuts in their annual quota this May.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times

March 28, 2013 — Unless you are an avid scuba diver, when you think of scallops, you probably think of linguine and garlic more than oceans and shells. That's because we only eat the muscle of the scallop: You never see them in context.

And so … one of the most shocking things I discovered researching animal vision was that scallops have eyes! Not only do they have eyes, they have dozens of them along the edges of their shell openings. And the weirdest part? In some species like the bay scallop, the eyes are the prettiest blue color.

Gah! Try and saute up some scallops tonight after seeing that photograph. I dare you.

These eyes are not exactly competing with eagle eyes for visual acuity. But they do have some very strange and interesting features, as Sonke Johnsen explains in his surprisingly readable and fun book, The Optics of Life: A Biologist's Guide to Light in Nature. Each of these eyes has a tapeta, which is a biological mirror that sits on the back of the retina. In most nocturnal species, the tapetum (singular form) bounces light back through retina, allowing the photoreceptors in animals like cats and raccoons a second shot at capturing more light, which is key for seeing in very dim conditions.

Read the full story at The Atlantic