TiiK BACK mail 



"The Back Page" is an update on Sea 

 Grant activities— on research, marine 

 education and advisory services. It's 

 also a good place to find out about 

 meetings, workshops and new publica- 

 tions. For more information on any of 

 the projects described, contact the Sea 

 Grant offices in Raleigh (919/737-2^)- 

 For copies of publications, write UNC 

 Sea Grant, NCSU, Box 8605, Raleigh, 

 N.C. 27695-8605. 



Christmas is just weeks 

 away. If you haven't 

 finished your shopping, 

 how about a browse 

 through the Sea Grant 

 shelves. We've got a book 

 for just about everyone. 

 Here's a sampling from our catalog. Tb 

 ensure delivery by Christmas, send in 

 your order and payment promptly and 

 indicate the publication number. 



Seashells Common to North Carolina 

 is one of our most popular publications 

 and sure to please any beachgoer. The 

 36-page booklet provides detailed 

 descriptions and photographs of shells 

 you're likely to find on Tkr Heel beaches. 

 Ask for UNC-SG-72-09. The cost is 

 75 cents. 



If there's a coastal property owner on 

 your list, he'll be sure to enjoy Seacoast 

 Plants of the Carolinas. It's a valuable 

 tool for landscaping or just for identify- 

 ing various plants. Ask for UNC-SG-73- 

 06. The cost is $2. 



And how about a copy of Coastal 

 Capers: A Marine Education Primer? 

 This 76-page booklet is full of activities 

 for parents and young children. The 

 "capers" are fun and educational. Ask 

 for UNC-SG-84-05. The cost is $3.50. 



For sportsmen. Sea Grant has a vari- 

 ety of publications. One of the most pop- 

 ular is a cookbook. Recipes with a New 

 Catch contains instructions for handling 

 and preparing 16 species of non-tradi- 

 tional fish. You'll find recipes for shark, 

 triggerfish, bluefish, amberjack and 

 more. Ask for UNC-SG-86-06. The cost 

 is $2. 



A Guide to Recreational Shrimping 

 provides tips for rigging small boats for 

 catching the tasty crustaceans. Ask for 

 UNC-SG-86-07. The cost is $4. 



When a single clam brings 10 cents 

 to 20 cents at the seafood dealer, coastal 

 folks start talking about raising or cul- 

 turing the valuable moUusks. People 

 want to know how to handle the young 

 "seed" clams and how to rear their older 

 counterparts in beds, or gardens. 



That's why Skip Kemp, a Sea Grant 

 specialist, has set up a clam nursery 

 demonstration site behind the N.C. 

 Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores. In a co- 

 operative project with the aquarium, 

 Kemp has built a mini-nursery to show 

 prospective clam gardeners different 

 clam rearing techniques. 



If you'd like to visit the demonstration 

 site, call Kemp at 919/247-4007. 



Kemp also has up-to-date supplier lists 

 for shellfish seed and plastic mesh. The 

 mesh is used to protect the clams from 

 predation once they're put to bed. 



And, prospective gardeners may want 

 to mark their calendars for Feb. 6. Sea 

 Grant is cosponsoring an all-day clam 

 grow-out conference at the Duke Univer- 

 sity Marine Laboratory in Beaufort. Fur- 

 ther details about the conference will be 

 announced in the January Coastwatch. 



Sea Grant is sponsoring a national 

 technical conference on surimi, a minced 

 fish product used in restructured 

 seafoods. 



Until recently, most surimi was made 

 from Alaska pollock. But Sea Grant 

 researcher Tyre Lanier has proved that 

 fatty fish, such as menhaden, are also 

 acceptable in making surimi. 



The conference, to be held in Raleigh 

 Dec. 10 and 11, will examine the use of 

 fatty fish in surimi. It will attract indus- 

 try leaders and international experts in 

 surimi research. 



Write Sea Grant for more information 

 on the conference. 



Sea Grant and the Carteret County 

 Waterman's Association are hosting the 

 eighth annual N.C. Commercial Fishing 

 Show March 12 and 13. 



Last year more than 5,000 people at- 

 tended the boat and gear show in More- 

 head City. And even more are expected 

 this year for the show that will feature 

 boats, engines, electronics, fishing gear 

 and accessory equipment. Workshops 



and seminars on fisheries topics also will 

 be offered. 



Dealers and manufacturers interested 

 in securing a booth at the show may call 

 Sea Grant agent Bob Hines at 919/247- 

 4007. 



Fall is a time for mov- 

 ing south. Wild swans, 

 geese and ducks fly to 

 North Carolina sounds to 

 avoid the bitter northern 

 winter. 

 But birds aren't the 

 only southbound creatures. 



In October and November, migrating 

 fish such as bluefish cruise through 

 North Carolina's coastal waters on a trek 

 to warmer waters. 



Schools of bluefish often concentrate 

 at Cape Hatteras. And when bait fish 

 are close to the beaches and conditions 

 are just right, a bluefish blitz is likely. 



Lundie Spence, Sea Grant's education 

 specialist, describes a blitz. 



"Small bait fish are driven to the 

 water's surface with bluefish slicing 

 through them. Sometimes the small fish 

 are driven onto the beach. Gulls and 

 terns cash in on the blitz as they dive for 

 loose scraps," Spence says. 



Word of a blitz travels quickly. Soon a 

 crowd appears, and everyone is casting 

 and reeling in blues. 



But Spence urges fishermen not to get 

 so caught up in the action that fish are 

 wasted. 



Gut and ice your catch immediately, 

 and freeze what you can't eat in a short 

 time. Because bluefish are oily, their 

 freezer shelf life is only about three 

 months. 



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, N.C. 27695-8605. Vol. 14, No. 

 10, November/ December 1987. Dr. B.J. 

 Copeland, director. Kathy Hart, editor. 

 Nancy Davis and Sarah Friday, staff 

 writers. 



