HIGHLIGHTS
New Alaska Fisheries Science Center Director Today NOAA announced the appointment of Dr. Robert Foy as the new Science and Research Director for the Alaska Fisheries Science Center. In this role, he will oversee the agency’s work to monitor the health and sustainability of fish, marine mammals, and their habitats across nearly 1.5 million square miles of water surrounding Alaska.
Closing out National Seafood MonthAs we end our celebration of National Seafood Month, take a new look at opah as a culinary treasure trove, and check out a new FishWatch demonstration video.
Bon appétit!
Making the Most of OpahOpah, or “moonfish,” are caught seasonally off the coast of California. Their unique physiology gives opah seven distinct types of meat, several of which are discarded during processing. NOAA scientists, fishermen, and the seafood industry are teaming up to develop ways to more fully use all parts of the opah.
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FishWatch Helps Consumers Make Seafood Choices In a new video, Chris Brown, a commercial fisherman in New England, gives a shout-out to FishWatch.gov—a website that provides information on popular seafood harvested or farmed in the United States to help consumers make smart, sustainable seafood choices.
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Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Permits –
Open for Public CommentNOAA Fisheries will consider issuing exempted fishing permits, scientific research permits, display permits, letters of acknowledgment, and shark research fishery permits for the research and collection of Atlantic highly migratory species in 2019. We will host a webinar on November 14 to provide a general overview of the program. Comments on permit applications are due November 30.
2019 Shark Research Fishery – Call for ApplicationsNOAA Fisheries requests applications for participation in the 2019 shark research fishery, which allows the collection of certain shark species from federal waters in the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean Sea for the purposes of scientific data collection. Completed applications, and the required vessel information, are due December 1.
NOAA Teacher at Sea Program Call for Applications Do you know any full-time educators looking for a unique, immersive research experience? NOAA’s Teacher at Sea Program is accepting online applications for the 2019 field season November 1–30. NOAA Teachers at Sea sail with NOAA scientists on fisheries, oceanographic, and hydrographic research cruises around the nation.
Pacific Islands
Conservation Partners Rescue Rare Sea Turtle Hawksbill turtles are the rarest and most endangered sea turtle species in the Pacific Ocean. In July, when a young hawksbill stranded on Oahu, conservation partners—including veterinarians at NOAA’s Inouye Regional Center—stepped up to help.
Science Blog: Machine Learning and Whale SongScientists with the Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center’s Cetacean Research Program use a network of hydrophones (underwater microphones) to record whale songs around the Pacific Islands. Now they’re teaming up with Google’s Artificial Intelligence Group to use computers to identify humpback whale songs in thousands of hours of recordings.
Southeast
Celebrating Right Whales in FloridaOn Saturday, November 3, the 10th annual Right Whale Festival will take place in Jacksonville Beach, Florida, to celebrate the annual return of North Atlantic right whales to warm southeastern waters to calve and nurse their young. The day before, the mayor of Fernandina Beach, Florida—host city for the festival next year—will officially declare November “ Right Whale Month” for the city.
Open Ocean Trustees Draft Restoration Plan – Open for Public CommentThe Open Ocean Trustees for the Deepwater Horizon Natural Resource Damage Assessment presented webinars on October 16 and 17 to provide an overview of the Open Ocean Draft Restoration Plan 1 and Environmental Assessment for Birds and Sturgeon. The presentation and remarks are now available online. Comments on the draft plan are due November 9.
Gulf For-Hire Reporting – Open for Public CommentBy November 26, please submit your comments on a proposed rule that would modify reporting requirements for vessels with charter vessel/headboat permits for Gulf reef fish or Gulf coastal migratory pelagic fisheries. The proposed rule implements the For-Hire Reporting Amendment, intended to improve data collection and fisheries management.
South Atlantic For-Hire Reporting Info SessionsNOAA Fisheries is developing an electronic reporting program for permit holders who have a South Atlantic federal charter/headboat for-hire permit for snapper-grouper, dolphin-wahoo, or coastal migratory pelagic fisheries. We will hold informational sessions around the region between November 1–December 13.
Greater Atlantic
Restored Reefs Support Chesapeake TournamentThe Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s second annual Rod and Reef Slam Fishing Tournament celebrated finding a diversity of species—rather than catching the biggest fish—as its goal. Targeting restored oyster reefs, the tournament highlighted the vibrant diversity the reefs now support and collected valuable data on fish communities.
Shellfish Declines Linked to Environmental FactorsBetween 1980 and 2010, documented landings of the four most commercially important bivalves—eastern oysters, north quahogs, softshell clams, and northern bay scallops—declined dramatically. Now researchers have identified environmental factors, rather than overfishing, as the key drivers of these declines.
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Events
November 1 and 9Top NOAA leaders will conduct public conferences around the nation about the Department of Commerce 2018–2022 Strategic Plan.
November 1–December 13Four information sessions on the South Atlantic electronic for-hire reporting program in Georgia, Florida, and North Carolina.
November 310th Annual Right Whale Festival in Jacksonville Beach, Florida.
November 5Webinar on the proposed traceability program for U.S.farmed shrimp and abalone.
November 7–8
U.S. Aquaculture Innovation workshop and networking event in Baltimore, Maryland.
November 8
Public webinar hosted by the Marine Protected Areas Federal Advisory Committeeabout nominations for open seats.
November 13–14
Free workshop on law enforcement in federal for-hire fisheries, hosted by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council in Philadelphia.
November 13 and 15
Two free Protected Species Safe Handling, Identification, and Release workshops in Florida and Louisiana.
November 13–16United States–Japan Natural Resources Panel on Aquaculture Scientific Symposium in Mystic, Connecticut.
November 14Informational webinar on 2019 exempted fishing permitsand other related permits for Atlantic highly migratory species.
November 14Annual public meeting, via webinar, of the Open Ocean Trustee Implementation Group for the Deepwater Horizon Natural Resource Damage Assessment.
November 15Free Atlantic Shark Identification workshop in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina.
December 3 and 13
Two free Protected Species Safe Handling, Identification, and Release workshops in North Carolina and New York.
December 12Free Atlantic Shark Identification workshop in Largo, Florida.
Announcements
November 1Applications due for 2019 Species Recovery Grants to States.
November 8Nominations due for 11 seats on the Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Advisory Panel.
November 12Applications due to attend the U.S. Aquaculture–Gulf Coast Innovation workshop and networking event scheduled for February 2019.
November 30Online application period closes for NOAA’s Teacher at Sea Program.
December 1Nominations due for membership on the Marine Protected Areas Federal Advisory Committee.
December 1Applications due for participation in the 2019 Atlantic shark research fishery.
December 14Nominations due for the 30thAnnual National Wetlands Awards.
Federal Register Actions
Visit regulations.gov for a list of only those actions open for public comment. Scroll search for National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
For a list of all daily actions, check the Federal Register online.
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