DV-12-13 Feasibility of genetic fingerprinting to determine scallop lineage

UMaine Alert

Posted: April 19, 2024 - 1:32 PM

At approximately 9:24 a.m. on Friday, April 19, a University of Maine graduate student was struck by a university vehicle on Long Road at the University of Maine campus in Orono. The student reports that they are at a local hospital with minor injuries.

Emergency services, including the Orono Fire Department, University Volunteer Ambulance Corps, University of Maine Police Department, Orono Police Department and Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office responded to the scene.

The university vehicle involved in the incident was a Chevrolet Express van. It was being operated by a university employee.

Counseling services and support are available for students, faculty or staff who may have been affected. The Counseling Center can be reached at 207-581-1392 and the Dean of Students Office can be reached at 207-581-1406.

The scene has been cleared and Long Road is now accessible. An investigation is being conducted by the University of Maine Police Department with assistance from the Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office Crash Reconstruction Unit. Any witnesses to the incident are encouraged to contact Lt. Noel Santiago at noel.santiago@maine.edu.

November 8, 2018

Erin Owen
Husson University
1 College Circle
Bangor, ME 04401
207.941.7744
Email Erin Owen

Maine’s small but unique coastal scallop fishery has been a lucrative source of income for fishing communities, only second in value to the state’s lobster fishery. In response to a steady decline in landings, the Maine Department of Marine Resources initiated a series of emergency management measures in 2009 to protect and rebuild the resource, including closing some scallop grounds to fishing for a period of three years. The expectation is that populations will recover as new individuals recruit first to the closed area and then, as they grow to legal size, to the fishery. Closed areas may also serve as a source of new recruits to adjacent locations. It remains unclear which beds or management areas serve as key spawning biomass and sources of new recruits. Identifying the scale over which dispersal occurs is central to understanding whether closed areas are likely to serve as sources or sinks of new recruits and whether specific areas should remain closed as long-term spawning sanctuaries.

Taking advantage of the opportunity presented by fishery closures and the new rotational management plan, Owen will analyze scallops from two locations for microsatellite markers to determine parentage relationships, which can provide estimates of recent dispersal or connectivity among locations. This proof-of-concept study will assess the feasibility of using genetic markers to assess the source of juvenile scallops to closed areas and adjacent areas that are open to fishing, thus helping to evaluate and inform management decisions.

Sea Grant funds: $4,600