Posts Tagged ‘september’

Menhaden Seek Safe Harbor in Wellfleet; Still Absent in Sippican Harbor

Monday, September 29th, 2008

Atlantic menhaden, known locally as pogies, alwifes, and bunker, often school in estuaries during September and October, swimming in very large balls as herd protection from ferocious bluefish attacks.  As Hurricane Kyle blew by Cape Cod on Sunday, topping off a long three day weekend of pouring rain, a menhaden school flooded into the inner harbor of Wellfleet at high tide, followed by blues that were followed by local fishermen.  The word must have spread by ethernet (among bluefish and humans) because soon fishing poles outnumbered pogies.

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Menhaden Flood into Wellfleet Inner Harbor

Over the last few years, locals have perceived a significant decline in menhaden.  They have petitioned state and federal legislators for action to control the reduction fishery in which menhaden are harvested for the extraction of omega-3 oils for human consumption with the remainder used for aquaculture and livestock feed.  Menhaden are also harvested as bait for both commercial and recreational fisheries.  Whatever the cause of perceived overfishing, menhaden form a critical link in the coastal ecosystem and their absence would have a significant effect in degrading the coastal enviroment.

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Large Concentration of Menhaden in Sippican Harbor (2006)

In Sippican Harbor off Buzzards Bay, we have been awaiting the arrival of pogies this year.  We found no significant concentration of menhaden in the fall of 2007.  The last time we documented a major massing of menhaden schools in Marion’s Sippican Harbor was September and October 2006.  We are waiting to see if they return in any substantial numbers in 2008.

Sippican Menhaden Beset with Parasitic Copepods

As you can detect in the close-up shots from the video clip, a large percentage of 2006 menhaden were adorned with parasitic copepods.

Don Lewis Holds Menhaden Netted in Chipman’s Cove

During early October 2005 we documented many large schools of menhaden in Wellfleet’s Chipman’s Cove, south of the harbor pier.

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Menhaden Massing in Chipman’s Cove (2005)

Meet “Snappy” at Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary

Sunday, September 28th, 2008

Mass Audubon‘s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary, celebrating its 50th anniversary this September and featuring its upgraded nature center with Platinum-certified Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) designation, now hosts a series of tanks to represent the various sanctuary ecosystems from fresh water stream to Cape Cod Bay. 

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Introducing “Snappy” at Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary

In the fresh water tank, visitors have a chance to meet “Snappy,”  a young juvenile snapping turtle with a Hollywood A-List attitude.  Assuming ownership of the tank, Snappy is always ready to greet sanctuary visitors with his handsome smile and to illustrate “what lies beneath” all those beautiful lily pads in peaceful, pristine ponds.  Isn’t Snappy cute?

The Last Terrapins

Thursday, September 25th, 2008

As September chill grips Cape Cod, terrapins head for winter slumber (brumation).  Only a few remain active late into the month and they become extremely difficult to find, less active and spending more of their time underwater, surfacing less frequently for air.

The Run in South Wellfleet

If you’re looking for turtles to sample this late in the month, one of the best places to try is the Run, a wide, shallow inlet south of Lieutenant Island linking many of the salt marsh channels where terrapins are known to brumate.  Wednesday’s weather was clear with a brisk northeast wind off the Atlantic Ocean.  The air temperature hovered around 60 and the water held in the mid to upper 50s.  My legs froze while Sue more intelligently chose waders over bathing attire.

Sue Wieber Nourse Captures Female Terrapin 2149

Low tide came a 2:30 pm.  In the Run, low tide marks the best chance to capture terrapins in the shallow, clearer water.  Our first capture was an 11-year-old female that Sue spotted as the turtle raced up channel toward the marsh creeks.  We had last observed this terrapin during field school on July 10th as she nested on a sandy bank just off Lieutenant Island.  Since then she had gained nearly 200 grams for the long winter ahead.

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Sue Wieber Nourse Hand-Netting Terrapins in the Run

Sue found the male terrapin, lazing motionless on the bottom.  it was the first time we had captured this male that measured 12 centimeters long and weighed a little under 300 grams; that is, about 3/4 the linear length and 1/3 the mass of the female.

Foul Weather Approaches the Outer Cape

With a meteorological depression heading for the Great White North tomorrow and Saturday forecast to pound the Outer Cape with rain and wind and cold, chances are that this adorable couple will be the last adult terrapins we will capture until field season returns in late April.  If history repeats, we will see a few more nests emerge until mid-October, and occasionally we will be confronted in the fall or in very early spring with a cold-stunned adult that didn’t find a particularly safe brumation site.  For our active collection program, though, the gavel has sounded for the 2008 field season.