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August 9, 2005
Lobster Boom and Bust
NEWPORT, R.I.When marine biologists think about lobsters, here is what they want to know: Why are there so many of them, and why are there so few?
The American lobster, Homarus americanus, seems to be thriving in the Gulf of Maine, where in recent record-breaking years fishermen have annually pulled 70 million pounds or more of lobster from their traps, sending them to markets as far away as Tokyo.
Off Vinalhaven, Me., where Walter Day goes lobstering, the lobster population is booming, for reasons only partly understood. The Gulf of Maine has abundant lobsters, but farther south, off Massachusetts and Rhode Island, the population has crashed.
"The last 10 years have been banner years in Maine, with more lobsters landed than ever," said Linda Greenlaw, who fishes for lobsters from Isle au Haut (pronounced I'LL-oh-ho), at the mouth of Penobscot Bay. "Nobody can believe it." But even as fishermen applaud these catches, they are looking nervously to the south. Off Cape Cod, along coastal Rhode Island and in Long Island Sound, lobster populations that soared in the early 1990's had plunged by 2000 and have only slightly recovered. After seasons of pulling up almost empty traps, some lobster fishermen in the region have sold their boats and sought other work.
Those who remain "are nervous for the future," said Dennis Ingram, who has been fishing since the 1980's and whose lobster boat, the Blue Moon, is based here. Like other lobstermen in the region, Mr. Ingram is helping scientists and fishery experts in trying to assess and restore lobster stocks. Although things have improved a bit in the last few years, he said, "I want to know what's coming down the road, to plan my business."
There are many possible causes for this lobster crash, just as there are a number of competing theories to explain the abundance farther north. To try to sort things out, marine biologists and other scientists are assessing lobster larvae levels, tracking juvenile lobsters with underwater robot cameras, and tagging them with magnetic chips or banding them the way that ornithologists band birds. They are watching them fight and mate in laboratory tanks. They are even designing underwater reefs they hope will turn into attractive shelters for lobsters.
"It's very clear that south of Cape Cod, particularly inshore, the resource is suffering and so are the fishermen, while the Gulf of Maine is going great guns," said J. Stanley Cobb, a biologist at the University of Rhode Island and a leader in lobster research. Asked why, Dr. Cobb scratched his head. "If I could answer that question, I'd be famous," he said.
This is a fascinating issue. It will be interesting to see what information their study uncovers.
Read more here.
Posted by Daffodil at August 9, 2005 10:47 AM
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