Maine Sea Grant

Christopher Johnson Sipayik Environmental Department Passamaquoddy Tribe Perry, Maine The Sipayik Environmental Department at Pleasant Point is expanding focus on American eel (Anguilla rostrata), which have been vital to Wabanaki culture and survival for thousands of years. Efforts to maintain and enhance eel populations in the ancestral homeland are critical to the continued sustainability of […]

Joshua Stoll School of Marine Sciences University of Maine Maine’s commercial fishing sector has had a long history of participating in fisheries management. Communication between harvesters and policymakers has been instrumental in the development of rules and regulations that have helped to sustain the region’s coastal fisheries. Fishermen have deep understanding of the natural environment. […]

Gayle Zydlewski School of Marine Sciences University of Maine Since 2012, Gayle Zydlewski has been leading a team of students and local partners to assess the effects of tidal power development on fish presence, behavior, and distribution, with a goal of informing decisions about the industry’s future in eastern Maine and beyond. However, many factors […]

Cary Friedman Assistant Professor of Marine Science Maine Maritime Academy Castine, ME Persistent organic pollutants are pervasive throughout the world’s oceans, and they are present in the Penobscot River and Bay. One type of pollutant, a polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) used as flame retardant on a wide variety of products, can be toxic to people […]

Ian Bricknell School of Marine Sciences University of Maine The European green crab, Carcinus maenas, is an invasive species on the East Coast of the United States as well as many other regions around the world, and threatens important seafood species in Maine. There are no significant natural predators of green crabs on the coast […]

Jason Goldstein Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve 342 Laudholm Farm Rd Wells ME 04090 In recent decades, landings of Jonah crab have more than quadrupled in New England. During harvesting, it is a common practice for fishermen to remove the claws of freshly caught Jonah crabs and subsequently return them to their environment. The biological […]

Robert Steneck University of Maine School of Marine Sciences Thew Suskiewicz Université Laval Filippo Ferrario Université Laval Doug Rasher University of Maine Maine’s coastal ecosystem changed profoundly during the 1990s, with the collapse of nearshore sea urchin populations. The loss of this important grazer led to increased abundance of Irish moss (Chondrus crispus), kelp and […]

Malcolm Burson & Karen Marysdaughter Climate Solutions Communication & Outreach Working Group 161 Stovepipe Alley Monroe, ME 04951 207.525.4538 The University of Maine played a key role in producing the Department of Environmental Protection’s 2010 publication, "People and Nature: Adapting to a Changing Climate." Despite the challenges noted by the University and other stakeholders in the report, […]

Kate Dickerson 207.478.9548 mainesciencefestival.org Maine is a rural state with a small, dispersed population, where many residents feel the loss of traditional industries and are struggling economically. The state is exceptionally rich in natural resources, however, and its beauty has attracted and held generations of highly creative citizens who have adapted to the remote and […]