Pacific Region

Alaska Sea Grant
Sea Grant crab research program prepares for egg hatch

• More than one million king crabs are expected to hatch at the University of Alaska Fairbanks Seward Marine Center in the coming weeks.
• The hatch will mark an important milestone in efforts aimed at rebuilding wild king crab stocks around Kodiak and the Pribilof Islands.
• "We feel like expectant parents," said Brian Allee, director of Alaska Sea Grant and manager of the Alaska King Crab Research and Rehabilitation Program.
• The program was launched in 2006 at the urging of coastal communities and fishermen from Kodiak and the Pribilof Islands. The newly hatched crab will help scientists understand what is needed to succeed in large-scale hatchery restoration of red and blue king crab stocks in parts of Alaska where their numbers are low.
• The Alaska King Crab Research and Rehabilitation Program was born out of a grassroots effort by fishermen and coastal communities to reverse a decades-long slump in wild king crab production.
  

University of Southern California Sea Grant
Sea Grant and county partners foster public safety and beach awareness

• Sea Grant and the L.A. County Fire Department, Lifeguard Division created the Coastal Monitoring Network, a web-based portal aimed at promoting safety at L.A. County beaches.
• L.A. County has successfully adopted the system to improve planning for public safety.
• Thirty cameras on heavily-used beaches allow the Lifeguard Division to effectively staff lifeguard towers.
• Beach use varies on a day-to-day basis, and the monitoring program is used by administrators to accurately assess needs. In addition, the website provides a portal for beach users, providing information on water temperature, waves, rip currents, crowd conditions, parking and beach amenities.
• For its ability to help the County determine community needs, the project was awarded L.A. County's “Golden Eagle Award.”

California Sea Grant
In Humboldt Bay, grazing geese support healthy eelgrass

• On their annual northward migration, tens of thousands of brant geese descend on Humboldt Bay to feed on eelgrass.
• California Sea Grant research shows that grazing at its current intensity level, stimulates eelgrass growth. Brant geese eat the innermost leaves and do not pull the plants out of the ground or eat their shoots, leaving the eelgrass in excellent condition to produce more leaves and shoots.
• The researchers theorize that grazing increases sunlight to the plants while fertilizing them with fecal material.
• The scientists' conclusions are based on a series of field experiments in Humboldt Bay, or about 45 percent of the California's eelgrass beds.

Hawaii Sea Grant
Hawaii Coastal Hazard Mitigation Guidebook is a resource for developers, architects, homeowners and government officials

• This Hawaii Sea Grant guidebook describes how to reduce the risk to coastal development by planning for natural hazards such as erosion, flooding, tsunamis and hurricanes.
• The guidebook was used extensively by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) during rebuilding efforts after the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season.
• Dozens of copies have been requested by government officials in Mississippi and Louisiana. The author is also working with Louisiana Sea Grant to write a Gulf coast version for post-Katrina recovery.
• Government officials in Indonesia requested that the author write an Indian Ocean version (after he visited Bande Ache to consult on rebuilding efforts in the aftermath of the December 2004 tsunami).
• The Hawaii Coastal Hazard Mitigation Guidebook has been a widely utilized and important resource for the county of Kauai, the State of Louisiana, agencies such as FEMA, and the government of Indonesia.

Oregon Sea Grant
Oregon Sea Grant program encourages local cooperation to save salmon

• Recently, Kathy Davis, owner of a commercial fishing boat business, completed training as the Lincoln County information specialist for the Fishermen Extending Salmon Recovery Information (FESRI) program, overseen by Oregon Sea Grant.
• Davis is the project coordinator for five FESRI agents working along the Oregon coast who are helping educate residents about the state's salmon populations while gathering citizen ideas and opinions on the issue to bring back to state policy makers.
• The FESRI program is part of the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board's Oregon Plan for Salmon and Watersheds, a program established in 1997 as a tool to help facilitate the restoration of healthy salmon populations.

Washington Sea Grant
Sea Grant researcher takes on Willapa's troublesome oyster drills

• A Sea Grant researcher is examining the impacts and dynamics of Eastern and Japanese oyster drills in Willapa Bay—a bay that is among the top five oyster producers worldwide.
• Oyster drills are non-native marine snails that feed on oyster flesh and can cause substantial damage to the resource and to the shellfish growers.
• The researcher collected and marked thousands of oyster drills over a period of two years. The tagged drills were released and, later, recaptured, enabling the scientist to glean important information about the growth, survival and reproductive rates of these snails.
• The research shows scientists how many drills at one stage in the life cycle will develop (or “transition”) into the next life stage. Understanding these transition probabilities is essential for the management of pest species.
• In addition to gaining important information about adult survival rates, the research is also shedding light on oyster drill eradication methods. It is clear that destroying the oyster drills’ egg capsules is much more effective than removing the adults. Therefore, it’s important for managers to time control measures to the drills’ egg-laying cycle — typically from April to July.