Past Projects Northeast Habitat and Fisheries Ecology Research
Past projects concerning fisheries, their habitats, and their functions in maintaining sustainable fisheries in the Northeast U.S. continental shelf ecosystem.
At the Fisheries and Habitats Branch of the Northeast Fisheries Science Center, our research includes multi-disciplinary and multi-agency expertise, and encourages collaborations with managers, academic researchers, and industry partners.
Marine Development Areas
We worked with the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to characterize the ocean floor as a potential location for marine development areas. In order to assess the ocean floor, we collected multitudes of oceanographic data and took many ground-truthing samples to confirm our discoveries.
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One of our sampling techniques was collecting and annotating millions of still images captured by the HabCam IV and the University of Massachusetts School for Marine Science & Technology’s pyramid camera systems. These images provided both 2D and 3D visual imagery. We also used grab and core sediment samplers to ground-truth our images. The use of side scan and high-resolution multibeam sonar provided vital topographic features that enabled us to map and define the ocean floor. We also calculated terrain metrics to determine the ocean floor’s slope, roughness, and aspect.
In addition to our visual data, we collected hydrographic CTD (temperature, salinity, and depth) and sediment (mud, silt, clay, sand, gravel, shell hash, and cobble) data for our analysis. We then combined this information with our data on bottom-dwelling animals and fish and shellfish abundance data.
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By building all these important facets into our dataset, we were able to measure and describe the biological and physical features of our ocean environment. In order to conserve habitat, it is essential for researchers to know what species lives in those areas, the physical structure of the areas, and how manmade structures might affect the animals and habitat.
Collaborator: University of Massachusetts/School for Marine Science & Technology
Habitat Climate Vulnerability Assessment
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The climate along the Eastern seaboard is changing dramatically. NOAA Fisheries is responsible for conserving habitats that support fisheries and protected species.
Several researchers from the Northeast Fisheries Science Center were part of a regional working group. They developed an important tool used to assess the vulnerability of habitats experiencing climate change. Marine fish and invertebrate species, marine mammals, and sea turtles are all subjected to changes in climate. It is important for us to understand how these changes create vulnerabilities to species, habitats, and communities. Learn more about this study.
Finfish Aquaculture
Food security, or knowing where our food will come from, is a growing concern around the globe. Cultivating fish for food in land-based recirculating systems or in controlled open-water containment areas can increase food security and reduce pressure on wild fisheries. Understanding the factors that affect fish growth and health is key to sustainably raising fish.
We worked with Manna Fish Farms andStony Brook University to study productive and sustainable ways to raise finfish in our region. Our aquaculture research helps inform management and benefits the aquaculture industry.
Turning Waste into Resources: Testing the Feasibility of Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture
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plies nearly half of the world’s seafood. However, finfish aquaculture can affect the environment by adding excess fish food and waste to an ecosystem. Integrated multi-trophic aquaculture is a potential solution to this problem. In these systems, two or more species from different trophic levels are grown together. The wastes from one species can be used to feed another, producing additional products for farmers to sell.
We tested the feasibility of an integrated multi-trophic aquaculture system consisting of striped bass, sand worms, and sea beans. We chose these species because striped bass are a “good eating” fish with high market value, sand worms are a highly sought-after bait and feed for farmed fish, and sea beans are an edible sea vegetable, a biofuel crop, and livestock fodder. All species are native to the Northeast United States.
Our study focused on answering three main questions:
- How does this system affect striped bass survival, growth, and food conversion ratio?
- How much striped bass waste can sand worms and sea beans consume?
- How much marketable biomass can a striped bass-sand worm-sea bean system generate?
NOAA Fisheries Feature Story:
Tautog Aquaculture
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We collaborated with Ward Aquafarms to study the potential of finfish aquaculture using tautog. Our goal was to document the best conditions for spawning adult fish and rearing embryos, larvae, and juveniles. We exposed tautog eggs and early larvae to a wide range of temperatures, stocking densities, tank sizes and styles, and prey quality and quantity.
We transferred the juvenile fish to Ward Aquafarms. They identified the best conditions for growing juvenile fish into adults. Aquacultured tautog offer a year-round supply of market-size fish, boosting regional economies while offsetting fishing pressure. This research was funded by the Northeast Regional Aquaculture Center and the joint project agreement between NOAA and the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries of the Republic of Korea.
Characterizing Microplastics in the Marine Environment
Microplastics are plastic fragments less than 5 mm in size. Larger plastics in the environment degrade into fragments through weathering by sun, wind, and waves. We find microplastics in the environment as fragments, fibers, foams, or pellets referred to as “nurdles.”
We have concerns about microplastics because they are similar in size to prey ingested by aquatic animals. When accidentally ingested, these microplastics can be transferred to higher predators. The different types of plastics can have different toxicities, and they collect different levels of contaminants. It is critical to understand the nature of the microplastics so we can monitor the quality of fisheries habitats and aquaculture facilities.
When we find plastics in the environment, our next step is to identify what kind of plastic it is. To do this, we use a Pyrolysis GC-MS analyzer system.
We cataloged libraries of polymers. The library database is used to identify plastics found in marine environments, fish, marine mammals, and seabirds.