The N.C. Natural Heritage Founda- 

 tion has pubUshed a guide to many of the 

 state's outstanding natural areas. A 

 Directory to North Carolina's Natural 

 Areas describes 108 locations from the 

 mountains to the barrier islands that are 

 accessible to visitors. 



The 98-page booklet describes state 

 parks, state wildlife gamelands, 

 estuarine reserves, national parks and 

 forests, as well as preserves owned by 

 private conservation groups. 



For a copy of the directory, write the 

 N.C. Natural Heritage Foundation, P.O. 

 Box 11105, Raleigh, N.C. 27604. The cost 

 is $5. 



Sea Grant has a guide 

 to some of the state's best 

 offshore fishing spots, and 

 strangely enough the 

 guide is called The Hard- 

 bottom Distribution Map. 

 "Hardbottoms" is a 

 geologic term for underwater mesas. 

 These mesas and their jagged edges 

 form natural reefs that attract some of 

 the ocean's most delectable fare- 



snapper, grouper and black bass. 



The hardbottoms in Onslow Bay— an 

 area between Cape Lookout and Cape 

 Fear— are pinpointed on a map. Using 

 the map's Loran grid, fishermen can 

 locate the reefs. 



Offshore fishermen say the maps will 

 take much of the guesswork out of snap- 

 per and grouper fishing in Onslow Bay. 



The flip side of the 39-by-27 inch poster 

 features five attractive, four-color paint- 

 ings of the underwater reefs and the 

 flora and fauna they attract. 



This side of the poster makes an ex- 

 cellent educational tool for teachers and 

 students. The realistic paintings can pro- 

 vide endless classroom discussion of off- 

 shore geology, underwater habitats and 

 species identification. 



The poster costs $5. For a copy, write 

 Sea Grant. Ask for UNC-SG-86-25. 



The 1987 Marine Expo will be held 

 Sept. 27 to Oct. 4 in Wilmington, N.C. 

 The weeklong event, held in conjunction 

 with Wilmington's Riverfest, features a 

 series of events focusing on marine 



resources, educational opportunities, 

 and the potential for future 

 development. 



This year underwater explorer Sylvia 

 Earl will deliver the keynote address 

 Tues., Sept. 29. And Emory Kristof, Na- 

 tional Geographic underwater 

 photographer, will present some of his 

 work Oct. 1. 



Staff fi'om Sea Grant and other marine 

 scientists will present some of the educa- 

 tional seminars for the expo. 



For more information about Marine 

 Expo '87, call 800/922-7117 in North 

 Carolina or 800/222-4757 in the eastern 

 United States. 



Coastwatch is published monthly ex- 

 cept July and December by the Univer- 

 sity of North Carolina Sea Grant College 

 Program, 105 1911 Building, Box 8605, 

 North Carolina State University, 

 Raleigh, NC 27695-8605. Vol. 14, No. 8, 

 September 1987. Dr. B.J. Copeland, 

 director. Kathy Hart, editor Nancy 

 Davis and Sarah Friday, staff writers. 



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