East Coast Marine Life Survey - AMAPPS III

Atlantic Right Whale | photo credit NOAA

The Atlantic Marine Assessment Program for Protected Species (AMAPPS) is a federal multi-agency program designed to study how many marine mammals, sea turtles, and seabirds are in U.S. waters, where they are located at different times of the year, and how they may be changing over time.

AMAPPS, allows researchers to put all the information about abundance, distribution, ecology and behavior of protected species - from whales, dolphins, and seals to marine turtles and seabirds - into an ecosystem context so resource managers can use it for conservation measures and decision-making.

The primary funders of AMAPPS are NOAA, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the U.S. Navy. One of the goals of the program is to develop models and related tools to provide distribution patterns and density estimates by season and location that includes habitat characteristics of marine mammals, turtles and seabirds along the U.S. East Coast.

The next five-year program, AMAPPS III, runs from 2019 to 2023. During AMAPPS III, in addition to continuing the above data collection, plankton (in particular larval tuna) samples will be investigated.

As part of AMAPPS activities in 2019, NOAA Fisheries scientists for the Northeast and Southeast Fisheries Science Centers conducted spring aerial surveys covering waters from Florida to Maine from the coastline to more than 200 miles offshore during April 1 to June 30 using NOAA Twin Otter aircraft.

The Northeast Fisheries Science Center also collects oceanographic and environmental data on its own shipboard survey cruises throughout the year, such as the Ecosystem Monitoring survey, which also hosts AMAPPS marine mammal and seabird observers.

One product of the program to date has been the Marine Mammal Model Viewer, which displays the data on a map of the East Coast showing the predicted abundance and distribution of a specific marine species in different seasons of the year, based on the data scientists collected during this project. Sightings of the 17 most common whale, dolphin and porpoise species are included, with more species to be added.

Wind-energy lease areas are marked on the maps, which can be viewed on computers as well as on mobile devices. A user can draw a box around an area of interest, investigate in more detail the density patterns within that box, then download the density data for use in other analyses.

The AMAPPS sightings data have also been used in other density models. For example, they have been used in mammal, turtle, and seabird maps available on the Northeast Ocean Data Portal.

Following the successful AMAPPS project in the western North Atlantic Ocean, similar projects have been initiated in the Gulf of Mexico (GoMMAPPS) and the Pacific Ocean (PacMAPPS).

Asian Tiger Shrimp Found in Gulf of Mexico - South Atlantic

Fishermen and other mariners are reporting higher numbers of non-native Asian tiger shrimp occuring off the U.S. Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coasts. In response to the phenomenon, NOAA recently announced that scientists have begun studying causes of the increase as well as possible consequences for native fish and seafood in both areas.

Researchers from the U.S. Geological Survey and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are working with state agencies from North Carolina to Texas to look into how this transplanted species from Indo-Pacific, Asian and Australian waters reached U.S. waters, and what the increase in sightings means for native species.

According to USGS officials, reports of Asian tiger shrimp increased tenfold in 2011. The cause of the rapid increase in tiger shrimp populations remains uncertain. NOAA scientists are launching a research effort to understand more about the biology of these shrimp and how they may affect the ecology of native fisheries and coastal ecosystems.

Anyone who sees one or more shrimp suspected to be an Asian tiger shrimp is asked to note the location and report the sighting to the USGS NAS database at http://nas.er.usgs.gov/SightingReport.aspx

source: NOAA FishNews

ASMFC Releases "Living Shorelines: Impacts of Erosion Control Strategies on Coastal Habitats"

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission has announced the release of the tenth publication in its habitat management series, entitled "Living Shorelines: Impacts of Erosion Control Strategies on Coastal Habitats." Living shorelines, or soft shorelines, are an approach to shoreline stabilization that preserves natural sand edge or vegetated shoreline.

An increasingly popular management strategy along the Atlantic coast, living shorelines not only control erosion but create environmentally desirable features, including habitat and vegetated buffers that improve water quality and reduce the effects of upland run-off.  Unlike traditional bulkhead or revetment approaches to shoreline protection, living shorelines also tend to dissipate rather than reflect wave energy.

The document provides a brief overview of traditional erosion control methods and living shorelines, as well as the types of habitats that may be considered when creating living shorelines. It identifies the impacts of some shoreline erosion control measures on the environment, and presents examples of how various regulatory authorities are involved.

To illustrate the value of living shorelines in a "real world" setting, the document provides a case study of their use in Maryland. This document should not be considered a complete review of existing living shorelines literature. That information can be found in other documents included in the bibliography.

Appendix B suggests potential erosion control projects. The purpose of this document is to provide resource managers and the general public with a concise comparative discussion of the benefits of living shorelines, and a case study of successful projects to use for reference within their own programs.

"Living Shorelines: Impacts of Erosion Control Strategies on Coastal Habitats" is available on the Commission's website at www.asmfc.org under Breaking news, or through the direct link at:

http://www.asmfc.org/publications/habitat/hms10LivingShorelines.pdf.

It is also available on CD-ROM; please send requests to info@asmfc.org (Subject line: Living Shorelines CD).

A limited amount of printed copies will be published. If you are interested in receiving one, please contact Tina Berger at tberger@asmfc.org or 202/289-6400.

Other reports available through the Commission's habitat management series include:

 * Atlantic Coast Diadromous Fish Habitat: A Review of Utilization, Threats, Recommendations for Conservation, and Research Needs (January 2009)

 * The Importance of Habitat Created by Molluscan Shellfish to Managed Species along the Atlantic Coast of the United States (May 2007)

 * Beach Nourishment: A Review of the Biological and Physical Impacts (November 2002)

source: ASMFC press release

NOAA to Review Status of 82 Species of Coral

On February 10, 2010, NOAA’s Fisheries Service announced that the agency will evaluate the status of 82
species of stony coral that the Center for Biological Diversity has asked to be listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act.

The center said that the habitat of these coral species in the Caribbean and Indo-Pacific region is threatened by rising seawater temperatures, increasing ocean acidification, intensifying storms, changes in precipitation, and sea-level rise—all linked to human-caused greenhouse gas emissions.

Of the 82 species that will be reviewed, seven species occur in U.S. Caribbean waters and, according to the petition, 75 occur in U.S. Pacific waters. Many, however, occur more frequently in other countries.

source: NOAA press release