John Anderson William H. Drury Chair in Ecology and Natural History College of the Atlantic 207.801.5717 Herring gulls and great black-backed gulls, once so ubiquitous they were routinely killed by wildlife officials, lately have experienced catastrophic declines throughout their range. Because both species of gull are found across much of the northern hemisphere, little has […]
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Ian Medeiros College of the Atlantic 774.218.8426 Nishanta Rajakaruna College of the Atlantic Seaweeds harvested and grown off the Maine coast support a strong and expanding seafood industry. Marine macroalgae have many unique characteristics, including the ability to absorb or bioaccumulate heavy metals. Whether or not these metals are available to consumers or have toxic […]
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Ian Bricknell Aquaculture Research Institute University of Maine Integrated multi-trophic aquaculture (IMTA) combines the cultivation of finfish, which require food additions, with species such as shellfish and seaweed. The concept is that orrganic particulate wastes like uneaten fish food are removed by the filter-feeding shellfish, and nutrients are taken up by the seaweeds. In this […]
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Esperanza Stancioff University of Maine Cooperative Extension & Sea Grant 377 Manktown Road Waldoboro, ME 04572 207.832.0343 Email Esperanza Stancioff Shaleen Jain & Alex Gray University of Maine Nirajan Dhakal Auburn University Maine Sea Grant’s work with town and city officials in the Building a Resilient Coast project affirmed their need to address the effects […]
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Teresa Johnson University of Maine School of Marine Sciences Income diversity for commercial fishermen in Maine is an important issue, given their overwhelming reliance on the American lobster. Access to permits, and allocations of resources like scallops, groundfish, urchins or shrimp are scarce, and the ability for an individual fisherman to move from one fishery […]
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Ian Bricknell Aquaculture Research Institute University of Maine Parasitic copepods known as sea lice are the major cause of financial loss to the Atlantic salmon aquaculture industry. Salmon farmers in the USA have worked with resource agencies for over a decade to implement integrated pest management plans that include routine monitoring of farmed fish, chemical […]
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Nick Brown Cooperative Aquaculture Research Institute University of Maine Sea urchins are harvested for their edible sex organs, known as uni in Japan and sushi restaurants, where they are highly valued. In the U.S., wild sea urchin fisheries exist in Maine, Southern New England, California, and the Pacific Northwest. In Maine, the fishery for the […]
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Markus Frederich Marine Science Center University of New England 207.602.2406 As filter feeders, blue mussels (Mytilus edulis) are at particular risk of accumulating aquatic pollutants. Municipal wastewater effluent, commonly discharged into marine environments, can contain pollutants, including heavy metals, polyaromatic hydrocarbons, and endocrine-disruptors, as well as pharmaceuticals and personal care products. Examining this waste in […]
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Damian Brady University of Maine and DeepCWind Consortium 207.312.8752 damian.brady@maine.edu As energy activities move offshore to the winds and waters of the Gulf of Maine, developers and regulators have to assess the effects of offshore technology on wildlife. Recent evidence indicates that the "marine aerosphere," or environment above the sea surface, is frequented by bats, […]
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John Duff Environmental Earth and Ocean Sciences University of Massachusetts 100 Morrissey Blvd. Boston, MA 02125 john.duff@umb.edu 617.287.7445 Efforts to employ marine spatial planning to improve coastal and ocean resource stewardship are underway, but the challenges faced by local governments are not well understood. Duff will examine how federal, state, and local authorities are working […]
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