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Science & Environment

Science and environmental reporting on news and community topics. Science coverage is occasionally provided by community members.

Sports Fishing Report: August 17, 2017

By Tyler Polum • Aug 18, 2017

Issued August 17, 2017

Regulation reminders:

Will Blue King Crab Ever Rebound In The Pribilof Islands? Marine Biologist Dives For Answers

By • Aug 16, 2017
Courtesy of Jared Weems

In the Pribilof Islands, no one’s gotten an accurate count of blue king crab since the population crashed hard in the 1980s.

This summer, a marine biologist is trying to change that, with the species’ first in-depth study in more than 30 years.

His ultimate goal: Determine if blue crab can make a comeback — or if it’s gone for good.

It’s a foggy day on St. Paul Island, and Jared Weems  is itching for the weather to clear up. He wants to get out on the water and back to work.

Teaching The Next Crop Of Whale Entanglement Responders

By • Aug 4, 2017
Berett Wilber/KUCB

 

On a sunny Tuesday night, about a dozen people are gathered on a dock. They’re practicing the skills needed to free a stranded whale.

Ed Lyman is up from Hawaii to lead the course. He has a lot of experience freeing entangled whales. He’s in town for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) — working to build Unalaska’s response team.

“Here we are in Dutch Harbor, fishermen galore, capital of fishing, in many ways in the U.S.,” Lyman said. “So you have a lot of skill sets there already. But having to cut free a 40 ton whale is unique.”

After A Rocky Start, Unalaska’s Subsistence Salmon Run Hits Target Escapement

By • Jul 28, 2017
KUCB

 

While Unalaska’s biggest subsistence salmon run got off to a slow start this season, it’s now at a sustainable level.

The start of the McLees Lake run was so low, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game issued an emergency order early this month to protect the area around the mouth of the creek.

While there are a lot of factors at play, biologist Colton Lipka says low water could have affected the run and they are seeing that in places like the Orzinski Bay Weir near the Shumagin Islands.

Underwater Camera Helps Scientists Keep An Eye On Atka Mackerel

By Berett Wilber • Jul 23, 2017
salmonfishing.org

Counting Atka mackerel became really important, according to National Marine Fisheries Service Biologist Suzanne McDermott, when Steller sea lions were declared endangered in 1997.

“We learned that Atka mackerel are their main food item,” McDermott said. “That’s when we really started looking at them in relation to Steller sea lions.”

McDermott knows the mammals face competition for their food — from commercial fishermen. In 2016, Alaska fishermen caught and kept 55,000 metric tons of Atka mackerel, and discarded another 532 tons as bycatch.

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