Marine Conservation News

Below you will find some of the newsclips of the week about marine conservation issues of particular interest to Marine Conservation Institute. What is your opinion on some of these topics?

National Fish and Wildlife Foundation announces new grants for sustainable fisheries

prnewswire.com

The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) today announced the first round of grant awards from its Fisheries Innovation Fund, a program launched in 2010 to support sustainable fisheries in the U.S. The 18 new projects will engage fishermen around the country in the design and implementation of effective catch-share fisheries.

Waste management key to cleaning up oceans

waste-management-world.com

Discarded plastic, industrial waste and unwanted fishing nets are still a growing problem for the world’s oceans, despite decades of efforts to reduce such marine debris. However, a new set of commitments - set out during the recent Fifth international Marine Debris Conference - hope to encourage the sharing of technical, legal and market-based solutions to reduce marine debris. One of the key findings of the conference was the need to improve waste management practices globally. It was said that improvements to national waste management programes not only help reduce the volume of waste in the world’s seas and oceans, but can also bring real economic benefits.

Hawaiian monk seals ‘fared fairly well’ during tsunami

mauinews.com

Last month's tsunami didn't appear to have seriously hurt the endangered Hawaiian monk seal population, the head scientist of the federal government's research program for the species said Monday.

Cruise line rolls out sustainable seafood program

seafoodsource.com

Holland America Line on Thursday announced that it is rolling out its new sustainable seafood program. The program stems from a partnership Holland America initiated with the Bellevue, Wash.-based environmental NGO Marine Conservation Institute last year.

Losing, But Slowly, In Struggle to Fight Back the Sea

npr.org

Some of the nation's richest and most important ecosystems lie where the ocean meets the land. It's these same coastal areas that are going to disappear as sea level continues to rise as a result of climate change. But in one wildlife refuge in North Carolina, conservationists are attempting what would seem to be impossible: fighting back the sea.

Seafloor Recovery from Fishing Gear Impacts in Stellwagen Bank Marine Sanctuary Slow, Unstable

sciencedaily.com

The University of Connecticut and California State University researchers found that seafloor communities in a restricted fishing area in NOAA's Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary showed indications of recovery from chronic fishing gear impacts but is not fully stable.

Make a telephone call for the survival of Kemp’s ridley sea turtles

I received a wonderful message today from our friends at Sea Turtle Restoration Project. I hope that you'll take some time to help them protect sea turtles in the Gulf of Mexico:

Subscribe | Donate | Tell A Friend

Please make at least one telephone call for the survival of Kemp’s ridley sea turtles this Thursday, April 28! No action has yet been taken to stop sea turtles from washing up dead and dying in the Gulf of Mexico. You can make a difference now with one call to the office of the Senate Subcommittee on Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries and Coast Guard.  Courteously leave a message about the need for National Marine Fisheries Service and the Coast Guard to send law enforcement to the Gulf of Mexico to ensure that shrimp fishers are using Turtle Excluder Devices in their nets. The state of Louisiana has NEVER enforced the federal Turtle Excluder Device law in their state waters. First, please take a few minutes to look at this New York Times video before you make your call. Call the Chairman’s office today: Senator Mark Begich on Capitol Hill in Washington DC:  202-224-3004. We suggest this short message be given to whomever answers: (Give your name and city of residence.) "I am calling about increasing protections for endangered sea turtles in Louisiana and throughout the Gulf of Mexico, where record numbers of dead sea turtles have washed ashore this month. Please urge the National Marine Fisheries Service and Coast Guard to increase enforcement of Turtle Excluder Devices in the shrimp trawl fishery immediately." You can also refer to the New York Times article: The New York Times reported that many of those found dead on Mississippi beaches appear to have been drowned in shrimp trawl nets and landed in Mississippi from ocean currents bringing them east from Louisiana. Next, call and share your concerns with NOAA Administrator Dr. Jane Lubchenco:  202-482-3436. For the maximum impact, call, write, and fax your U.S. Senators and share this important message to save Kemp's ridleys. Click here to find your Senator’s phone number. Click here to support STRP's ongoing campaign to protect Gulf sea turtles with a gift of any amount you can. Sincerely yours, Carole Allen Gulf Office Director At left: Carole Allen testifies on behalf of sea turtles at a hearing held in Houston, Texas. (Houston Chronicle photo).

Sea Turtle Restoration Project Email News and Updates PO Box 370, Forest Knolls, CA 94933 USA

Turn Down That Racket!

Go to the beach on a summer day. Listen to the sounds—the waves crashing, children shouting, seagulls squawking. Now go underwater.

Silence.

The undersea world, of course, is not truly devoid of sound. The ocean is literally awash with noises of all kinds: the explosion of a crashing wave, the clicks and whistles of chattering dolphins, the crunch of reef fish grazing on algae—and each other. Go snorkeling on a coral reef and you’ll experience a never-ending symphony of snaps, crackles and pops. In some ways life on the reef must be like swimming in a bowl of Rice Crispies.

I read an interesting article about undersea noise in a recent issue of Conservation Magazine, published by the Society for Conservation Biology. The author describes the ecological importance of sound in the ocean—many fish make noise to attract mates or scare off predators (just like terrestrial species), and some larval reef fish, born in the open ocean, find their home by following the sounds of the coral reef. It reminded me of a friend who had a similar theory about kelp forest fish. He speculated that the kelp-crunching jaws of the purple sea urchin (Strongylocentrotus purpuratus) made a sound that was amplified through their test (the shell), which larval kelp forest fish could follow to find their way home, just like their coral reef relatives.

The sounds of the ocean may seem strange to you or me, but marine species depend on them. The ecological importance of natural undersea noise is not yet well understood, but increases in maritime traffic, underwater construction, and seismic and sonar operations are making the ocean a louder place. Imagine never being able to ask someone out on a date because you can’t be heard over the din of traffic and construction.

Could anthropogenic sea noise hinder the survival of wildlife in marine protected areas? Sound in the ocean travels farther and faster (5x faster) than in air. Plus, the author in Conservation discusses evidence that ocean acidification will deplete sound-absorbing chemicals in the water, allowing it to travel even farther. MPAs generally limit noisy activities such as shipping and underwater construction in their proximity, but if acidic waters broadcast anthropogenic noise far and wide, could it hinder the ability of larval fish to even find their way home?

Maybe this one instance where the only solution to anthropogenic sea noise is to turn it down. What do you think?

Here is the link to read the article 'Aural Fog' in Conservation Magazine: http://www.conservationmagazine.org/2011/03/aural-fog/

Here is the link to the scientific paper by Steven Simpson referenced in the article: http://www.int-res.com/articles/meps2004/276/m276p263.pdf