Saving Seafood

MASSACHUSETTS: Feeling the pinch, state regulators double down on horseshoe crabs

June 11, 2026 — At 2 a.m., the Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge is shrouded in darkness, save for the headlamps of the two volunteers trudging through the dusky sand. Their mission is simple: count the horseshoe crabs who have gathered at the shoreline to spawn.

Drawn in by the light, a lone crab, the size of a dinner plate, scuttles up and lingers by the volunteers’ boots.

“I didn’t expect them to be so friendly and gentle,” one volunteer said. “They’re like sea Roombas.”

Each year, dozens of volunteers descend on Southeastern Massachusetts’ beaches to survey the horseshoe crabs during their mating season, over the full and new moons in May and June. The surveys began as a way to keep tabs on the species’ adult population, but in recent years, they have taken on new significance.

Horseshoe crab blood is a premier ingredient in vaccine development. That puts the state’s biomedical industry and conservationist groups at odds. Amid increased scrutiny from both sides, the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries is restructuring three full-time roles to focus more on monitoring the ancient moonlighting crab.

Read the full article at The New Bedford Light

MASSCHUSETTS: A way of life on the wane: Nantucket’s scallop fleet faces uncertain future

June 11, 2026 — Nantucket’s commercial scalloping industry has become a shell of its former self.

Fewer commercial scallopers, especially younger ones, are combing eelgrass beds each winter for Nantucket bay scallops, arguably New England’s most coveted shellfish.

The harbor’s adult scallop population has been on the rise in recent years, but the number of people willing to spend a morning on the water in wintery conditions has, for the most part, been steadily decreasing.

Close to 20,000 bushels were hauled out of Nantucket and Madaket harbors in 2012, one of the highest-yield seasons in recent memory, according to town shellfish and aquatic resource manager Tara Riley. In the 1980s, it was not unusual for the harvest to exceed 70,000 bushels.

This past commercial season, which wrapped up at the end of March, about 7,800 bushels were harvested. The season before 2024-2025, was the first time more than 10,000 bushels had been caught in nearly a decade.

Read the full article at The Inquirer and Mirror

MASSACHUSETTS: Here’s why thousands of squid washed up in Provincetown

June 9, 2026 — Beachgoers in Provincetown experienced a surprise Friday when thousands of squid were found washed up on the shore. The legions of dead cephalopods sparked ample discussion on social media and plenty of rumors, but experts say the event was perfectly normal.

Facebook user Jeff Krehely posted a video clip online last Friday morning showing a copious amount of squid strewn about the sand, one of multiple clips circling the internet that garnered confused and shocked reactions.

The next day, the Provincetown Harbormaster’s Office cleared the air in a statement posted online.

“The squid are NOT dying from a toxic event, red tide, or pollution. This is a completely natural process!” the harbormaster wrote.

Read the full article at Boston.com

Thousands of dead squid wash up on Provincetown beach

June 8, 2026 — Thousands of dead squid washed up on the beach in Provincetown Harbor on Saturday, sparking wild speculation on social media.

Officials, however, said there’s no dangerous substance floating in the water for bathers to be concerned about.

“The squid are NOT dying from a toxic event, red tide, or pollution,” read the statement from the Provincetown harbormaster’s office. “This is a completely natural process!”

The phenomenon is a natural part of the life cycle for the Atlantic longfin inshore squid, officials said. Squid migrate close to shore to spawn offspring, and like many species, die shortly after spawning.

Usually, the “mass spawning die-off” happens underwater, where the bodies are quickly eaten by fish, crabs, and other marine predators. In this case, the wind and tide pushed the dying squid up onto the beach, officials said.

Read the full article at the Boston Globe

MASSACHUSETTS: Scientists and fishermen join forces to study Atlantic cod

June 4, 2026 — After ten days at sea, researchers from the UMass Dartmouth School for Marine Science and Technology (SMAST) have returned from the Spring 2026 Gulf of Maine video trawl survey with encouraging early signs for one of New England’s most iconic fish species: Atlantic cod.

Conducted in partnership with commercial fishermen and supported by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the survey uses a unique open cod end video method developed by SMAST researchers to observe fish populations with minimal impact. The collaborative project reflects the growing role of industry-science partnerships in fisheries research while generating data that can help improve understanding and management of Gulf of Maine fish stocks.

The team departed May 6 and returned May 15 aboard the F/V Justice, owned by New Bedford commercial fisherman Danny Eilertsen. The vessel crew included Captain Robert Kohl, First Mate Tim Barrett, and Andrew Earle, who served as cook and deckhand. SMAST’s scientific team included Chief Scientist Dr. Nicholas Calabrese, PhD student Stephanie Merhoff, and MS student Helena Norton. On the first day of the survey, a film crew joined the expedition to collect footage for a documentary film about the historical and ongoing importance of the fishing and seafood industry in Boston and Massachusetts. This short film will be a centerpiece for the Boston Fisheries Museum’s upcoming exhibit during Sail Boston.

Read the full article at UMass Dartmouth

MASSACHUSETTS: Collaborative research group from SMAST, COE, and CCB wins $1.4M grant from Mass Tech Collaborative

June 4, 2026 — A UMass Dartmouth team spanning the School for Marine Science and Technology, the College of Engineering, and the Charlton College of Business recently received a $1.4M grant from the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative to create a “digital twin” for the MA shellfish aquaculture industry.

A digital twin is a virtual replica of a physical system. Using state-of-the-art tools like smart sensors, autonomous vehicles, and predictive artificial intelligence, the digital twin will provide real-time data insights for oyster growers about their operations, allowing them to make proactive management decisions. Beyond increasing shellfish aquaculture productivity, safety, and sustainability, the digital twin system also aims to turn data into a consumer-facing narrative that will position Massachusetts oysters as a premium sustainable seafood product.

“This academic/industry partnership is a key part of our mission at UMass Dartmouth as a public university,” said Professor of Estuarine & Ocean Sciences Miles Sundermeyer.  “It is especially important as many of these growers are small businesses who may not otherwise have the resources to invest in this level of data collection and analysis.”

Read the full article at UMass Dartmouth

 

7 states sue Trump administration over nearly $1 billion deal to halt offshore wind farm

June 3, 2026 — Seven states are suing the Trump administration over a nearly $1 billion deal to end French energy company TotalEnergies’ offshore wind development off the East Coast, accusing the deal of being “unlawful.”

In March, the U.S. Department of the Interior reached a $928 million deal with TotalEnergies to halt construction of the wind farms and redirect the investment into domestic fossil fuel initiatives. The “landmark agreement” was described by the Interior Department as a way to lower energy costs and strengthen the nation’s energy security.

Attorneys general in seven states in the Northeast, including Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont, filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Tuesday, alleging the Trump administration illegally used nearly $1 billion in taxpayer dollars for the deal.

The coalition also accuses the deal of violating the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, which restricts the Interior Department’s ability to cancel offshore wind leases.

Read the full article at ABC News

MASSACHUSETTS: Fleet Blessing Recognizes Risks And Rewards Of Fishing

June 3, 2026 — In a ceremony that was both somber and celebratory, townspeople gathered Sunday at the municipal fish pier for the annual Blessing of the Fleet.

Organized by the nonprofit Women of Fishing Families (WOFF), which is marking its 20th year, the blessing acknowledged the dangers and risks that commercial fishermen face while celebrating the industry’s heritage and role as providers of sustenance for the community.

“An event like this reminds us of what we have to come home to,” said Sam Linnell, captain of the F/V Great Pumpkin. “It’s not easy out there; this has been the toughest winter I think we’ve ever faced. We all need this even more than ever.”

Shannon Eldredge of WOFF noted the lives lost at sea this winter when several New England-based commercial fishing vessels sank, highlighting the risks fishermen take to harvest the ocean’s bounty.

Rev. Jennifer Zogg of St. Christopher’s Episcopal Church and Rev. Wendy Dahl of the First Congregational Church of Chatham blessed fishing boats and crews lined up at the south jog of the pier.

Read the full article at The Cape Cod Chronicle

MASSACHUSETTS: It Was Supposed to Be a Lifeline for a Blue-Collar Town. Then Trump Returned.

June 1, 2026 — The dock that launched U.S. offshore wind is mostly empty now. The 200-foot-tall tower pieces that loomed like skyscrapers over a harbor of fishing trawlers are gone. So too are the house-sized gearboxes and turbine blades stretching the length of a soccer field.

The big turbine parts were supposed to represent a new era in a city where fish houses and abandoned factories line the waterfront. They were assembled here, sent out to sea and installed as part of Vineyard Wind, the largest renewable energy project built to-date east of the Mississippi River. All that was left on a recent April day were empty blade racks, a pair of red cranes and three broken blades.

It wasn’t supposed to look like this.

Vineyard Wind was supposed to be the first of many. Instead, it may be the only offshore wind project ever built in New Bedford.

This city of Portuguese, Latino and Cape Verdean residents is ground zero for America’s offshore wind industry, a test case of whether a blue collar fishing town can forge a new economic future by raising massive turbines out at sea.

Read the full article at Politico

Rare shark spotted off New England coast

June 1, 2026 — A species of large-bodied shark that nearly disappeared from Atlantic waters has been seen feeding on seals off the coast of New England, according to marine biologists.

Typically it’s great whites that are expected near the Massachusetts coast in the summertime. However, several sightings of what were believed to be great whites attacking seals actually turned out to be the elusive dusky shark, John Chisholm, adjunct scientist at the New England Aquarium’s Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life, told ABC News.

Dusky sharks were nearly hunted to extinction in the late 20th century when commercial fisheries in the Gulf and Atlantic ramped up, according to Demian Chapman, senior scientist and director for the Center for Shark Research at the Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium in Sarasota, Florida.

Meat and fins of many shark species are highly valued, and they are targeted and taken as bycatch in commercial and recreational fisheries, according to the Florida Museum of Natural History. The demand for fins came primarily from China, Chapman told ABC News.

Read the full article at ABC News