Recent Trends in the Catch of Undersized Swordfish by the U.S. Pelagic Longline Fishery

U.S. commercial vessels fishing in the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and the Gulf of Mexico have been subject to regulations limiting the landing of swordfish less than 25 kg whole weight since June 1991. The intent of those regulations was to reduce the mortality of immature swordfihs. Plots of fishing effort from 1990 to 1994 indicate that the regulations were effective in some areas. Fishing effort decreased after 1991 in the Venezuelan Basin, a swordfish nursery area. However, in areas close to the U.S. coastline, effort did not appear to shift away from areas where immature swordfish were discarded. To identify areas with high rates of discarding, plots were made showing areas where the number of discarded swordfish was equal to or greater than the number of fish landed.

Scientific assessment of hypoxia in U.S. coastal waters

The occurrence of hypoxia, or low dissolved oxygen, is increasing in coastal waters worldwide and represents a significant threat to the health and economy of our Nation’s coasts and Great Lakes. This trend is exemplified most dramatically off the coast of Louisiana and Texas, where the second largest eutrophication-related hypoxic zone in the world is associated with the nutrient pollutant load discharged by the Mississippi and Atchafalaya Rivers. Aquatic organisms require adequate dissolved oxygen to survive. The term “dead zone” is often used in reference to the absence of life (other than bacteria) from habitats that are devoid of oxygen. The inability to escape low oxygen areas makes immobile species, such as oysters and mussels, particularly vulnerable to hypoxia. These organisms can become stressed and may die due to hypoxia, resulting in significant impacts on marine food webs and the economy. Mobile organisms can flee the affected area when dissolved oxygen becomes too low. Nevertheless, fish kills can result from hypoxia, especially when the concentration of dissolved oxygen drops rapidly. New research is clarifying when hypoxia will cause fish kills as opposed to triggering avoidance behavior by fish. Further, new studies are better illustrating how habitat loss associated with hypoxia avoidance can impose ecological and economic costs, such as reduced growth in commercially harvested species and loss of biodiversity, habitat, and biomass. Transient or “diel-cycling” hypoxia, where conditions cycle from supersaturation of oxygen late in the afternoon to hypoxia or anoxia near dawn, most often occurs in shallow, eutrophic systems (e.g., nursery ground habitats) and may have pervasive impacts on living resources because of both its location and frequency of occurrence.

Gill pathology of juvenile carps in nursery ponds

Gill pathology of juveniles of two Indian major carps Labeo rohita and Cirrhinus mrigala were studied for a culture period of three months in a private and a government fish farm pond. Under histopathological observations, only protozoan parasite, Myxobolus sp., was recorded as cyst. These myxosporidian cysts were high in the gills of L. rohita of the government farm pond followed by C. mrigala of the private farm pond. Hypertrophic gill lamellae (primary and secondary) with loss of secondary lamellae were evidenced in C. mrigala of privately operated pond.

Annual report 2004 - North Pacific Marine Science Organization (PICES). Thirteenth meeting, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.A., October 14-24, 2004

Report of Opening Session (pdf 0.07 Mb) Report of Governing Council (pdf 0.2 Mb) Report of the Finance and Administration Committee (pdf 0.08 Mb) Reports of Science Board and Committees Science Board inter-sessional meeting (pdf 0.05 Mb) Science Board (pdf 0.1 Mb) Biological Oceanography Committee (pdf 0.1 Mb) Fishery Science Committee (pdf 0.04 Mb) Marine Environmental Quality Committee (pdf 0.04 Mb) Physical Oceanography and Climate Committee (pdf 0.04 Mb) Technical Committee on Data Exchange (pdf 0.04 Mb) Reports of Sections, Working and Study Groups Harmful Algal Blooms Section (pdf 0.03 Mb) Working Group 17 on Biogeochemical data integration and synthesis (pdf 0.03 Mb) Working Group 18 on Mariculture in the 21st century - The intersection between ecology, socio-economics and production (pdf 0.06 Mb) Study Group on Ecosystem-based management science and its application to the North Pacific (pdf 0.04 Mb) Reports of the Climate Change and Carrying Capacity Program Implementation Panel on the CCCC Program (pdf 0.04 Mb) BASS Task Team (pdf 0.04 Mb) CFAME Task Team (pdf 0.04 Mb) MODEL Task Team (pdf 0.04 Mb) MONITOR Task Team (pdf 0.03 Mb) REX Task Team (pdf 0.04 Mb) Reports of Advisory Panels Advisory Panel on Continuous Plankton Recorder Survey in the North Pacific (pdf 0.4 Mb) Advisory Panel on Iron Fertilization Experiment in the Subarctic Pacific Ocean (pdf 0.03 Mb) Advisory Panel on Marine Birds and Mammals (pdf 0.04 Mb) Advisory Panel on Micronekton Sampling Inter-Calibration experiment (pdf 0.04 Mb) Summary of Scientific Sessions and Workshops (pdf 0.2 Mb) Membership List (pdf 0.07 Mb) List of Participants (pdf 0.09 Mb) List of Acronyms (pdf 0.03 Mb)

Annual report 1998 - North Pacific Marine Science Organization (PICES). Seventh meeting, Fairbanks, Alaska, U.S.A., October 14-25, 1998

Report of Opening Session (pdf 68 KB) Report of Governing Council Meetings (pdf 61 KB) Reports of Science Board and Committees: Science Board (pdf 56 KB) Biological Oceanography Committee (pdf 64 KB) Working Group 14: Effective sampling of micronekton to estimate ecosystem carrying capacity Working Group 11: Consumption of Marine Resources by Marine Birds and Mammals Fishery Science Committee (pdf 55 KB) Working Group 12: Crabs and Shrimps Marine Environmental Quality Committee (pdf 104 KB) Working Group 8: Practical Assessment Methodology Physical Oceanography and Climate Committee (pdf 44KB) Working Group 13: CO2 in the North Pacific Technical Committee on Data Exchange (pdf 37 KB) Implementation Panel on the CCCC Program (pdf 54 KB) Finance and Administration: Report of the Finance and Administration Committee (pdf 31 KB) Assets on 31st of December, 1997 Income and Expenditures for 1997 Budget for 1999 Composition of the Organization (pdf 27 KB) List of Participants (pdf 48 KB) List of Acronyms (pdf 13 KB)

Annual report 1993 - North Pacific Marine Science Organization (PICES). Second meeting, Seattle, WA, U.S.A., October 25-30, 1993

Report of Opening Session Report of Governing Council Meetings Reports of Science Board and Committees: Science Board Biological Oceanography Committee Fishery Science Committee Marine Environmental Quality Committee Physical Oceanography and Climate Committee Finance and Administration: Report of the Finance and Administration Committee Assets on 31st of December, 1992 Income and Expenditures for 1992 Budget for 1994 Composition of the Organization List of Participants (Document has 78 pages.)

First U.S. battleships through Panama Canal: Missouri, Ohio, Wisconsin (postcard ca 1914)

Leonard Carpenter Panama Canal Collection. Photographs: Dredging, Soldiers, and Ships. [Box 1] from the Special Collections & Area Studies Department, George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida.

U.S.S. Ohio, Panama Canal (ca. 1914)

Leonard Carpenter Panama Canal Collection. Photographs: Dredging, Soldiers, and Ships. [Box 1] from the Special Collections & Area Studies Department, George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida.

U.S. Favorite, Pedro Miguel Lock - Old Timers Trip through the Canal, Jan. 20, 1928

Leonard Carpenter Panama Canal Collection. Photographs: Views of Panama and the Canal. [Box 1] from the Special Collections & Area Studies Department, George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida.

80 C 143 U.S. Aeroplane carrier "Saratoga" in Guillard Cut- Panama Canal - Feb. 7, 1928

Leonard Carpenter Panama Canal Collection. Photographs: Views of Panama and the Canal. [Box 1] from the Special Collections & Area Studies Department, George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida.

80 C 146 U.S. Aeroplane carrier "Saratoga" and French cruiser "Joan D'Arc" in Pedro Miguel Lock - Panama Canal - 2/7/28

Leonard Carpenter Panama Canal Collection. Photographs: Views of Panama and the Canal. [Box 1] from the Special Collections & Area Studies Department, George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida.

80 C 147 U.S. Aeroplane carrier "Saratoga" and H.M.S. "Despatch" in lower chambers, Miraflores Locks - Panama Canal - 2/7/28

Leonard Carpenter Panama Canal Collection. Photographs: Views of Panama and the Canal. [Box 1] from the Special Collections & Area Studies Department, George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida.