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MASSACHUSETTS: Gloucester fisherman represents state in shrimp study

January 11, 2017 — Joe Jurek is no stranger to the Gulf of Maine northern shrimp fishery, having incorporated shrimping into his annual fishing calendar even after moving to Gloucester about a decade ago to groundfish.

“When sectors started in 2009, we would catch our groundfish quota as quickly as we could and then go fish the other fisheries, including the northern shrimp fishery,” Jurek said Tuesday. “I shrimped long before that, though. You could say it’s kind of my background.”

Jurek, owner and skipper of the 42-foot F/V Mystique Lady, will be the lone Massachusetts representative in the upcoming Gulf of Maine winter shrimp sampling program that will produce the only legal shrimping in 2017 in the Gulf of Maine.

The Mystique Lady is one of 10 trawlers participating in the sampling program, along with eight from Maine and one from New Hampshire captained by Mike Anderson of Rye. Jurek hopes to begin shrimping as soon as this weekend.

“I’m trying to get rolling so I can start Sunday,” Jurek said. “I’m really excited about catching some shrimp and about this program.”

He already has reached out to local lobstermen, providing a map of the area he intends to trawl and asking lobstermen to alert him to the presence of any gear that might be set or soaking in the area.

“If you have gear in the highlighted areas please touch base with me so we can work together,” Jurek wrote on his Facebook page. “And I will make sure I don’t tow thru any gear.”

Read the full story at the Gloucester Times

Expert: More Whale Sightings May Mean Less Pollution In NY Waterways

December 19, 2016 — RYE, N.Y. — It’s a majestic sight — a living creature, larger than a city bus,  breaching, frolicking in the the water close to shore.

Whale sightings are on the rise in the New York area, with sightings along the Long Island Sound, the ocean beyond the narrows and occasionally along the Hudson River.

In November, a wayward humpback whale dazzled spectators with binoculars as it swam up the Hudson near the George Washington Bridge, WCBS 880’s Sean Adams reported.

In October, several whales were spotted swimming off the shores of Rockaway Beach in Southern Queens, and back in August, a mother and daughter had a close encounter with a 24-foot whale off the Jersey Shore.

Whales have also been returning to the Long Island sound.

The whales are following their stomachs — searching for fish that thrive in local waters.

Read the full story at CBS New York

MAINE: Marine officials investigate dead whale

RYE, Maine — Crowds gathered Monday morning to witness a 45-foot humpback whale that washed onto rocks outside of Rye Harbor State Park and Foss Beach. Marine investigators quickly identified the whale as an 18-year-old female named Snow Plow.

The whale, which lay on its back, was guessed to have been dead for days before the tides pushed it to shore.

Fisherman had reported seeing the corpse floating 20 miles out at sea Sunday.

“A once in a lifetime experience!” said Rye resident Denise Levin after witnessing her first beached whale. Levin has been living in the area for almost 50 years and had never seen a whale so close.

Marine scientists responded to the scene and were working to determine the cause of death and scientists said a necropsy would be necessary to determine the cause definitively.

Jooke Robbins, senior scientist at the Center for Coastal Studies, said it would be unusual if Snow Plow had died of natural causes at her age.

Diane Schulte of the Blue Ocean Society was able to identify Snow Plow, who had been observed by scientists since she was a calf in 1998 in the southern Gulf of Maine.

Snow Plow’s mother, Fern, is still alive and was seen as recently as two days ago in the Gulf of Maine, Robbins said.

“There’s no obvious signs for reasons of why the animal is deceased,” said Rye Police Chief Kevin Walsh. State officials at the National Marine Fisheries Service have already determined that the cause of death was most likely not caused by a boat or entanglement in fishing line.

Mike Henry, a special agent for the National Marine Fisheries Service, said it will remain to be seen if a necropsy will be conducted.

See the full story at the Portsmouth Herald

Four rescued miles off Plum Island

May 23, 2016 — NEWBURYPORT, Mass. — Four fishermen were rescued roughly 28 miles off Plum Island on Saturday afternoon after their 25-foot Wellfleet capsized.

The boat was righted by a TowBoat U.S. crew and brought back to its port of origin in Rye, N.H. No one was injured, according to a U.S. Coast Guard official.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Times

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