TheBack Pa 



"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 publications. For 

 more information on any of the projects 

 described, contact the Sea Grant offices in 

 Raleigh (919/737-2454). For copies of pub- 

 lications, write UNC Sea Grant, Box 8605, 

 NCSU, Raleigh, N.C. 27695-8605. 



Fish farming is alive and 

 well in North Carolina. And 

 there are plenty of aqua- 

 culture experts who want to 

 share their know-how with 

 you. 



They'll get their chance 

 at the third annual N.C. Aquaculture 

 Development Conference, scheduled for 

 October 30-31 at North Carolina State 

 University in Raleigh. 



The conference will feature an im- 

 pressive slate of experts including Sea 

 Grant's Associate Director Ron Hodson, 

 who will speak on the culture of hybrid 

 striped bass. Sea Grant Marine Advisory 

 Service agents Skip Kemp and Wayne 

 Wescott will talk about clam nurseries and 

 crab shedding, respectively. 



Participants in the two-day conference 

 will hear the latest research on pond 

 culture systems, aquaculture in existing 

 farm ponds, raceway and tank systems, 

 and estuarine aquaculture. 



A technology session will introduce par- 

 ticipants to recirculating systems, 

 biological filtration technology, and 

 aeration and oxygen injection systems. 

 Discussions will center on problems in 

 production with recirculating systems. 



The conference will end with a tour of 

 "the fish barn," a new aquaculture 

 demonstration and research facility at the 

 university. An organizational meeting of the 

 N.C. Aquaculture Association will be held 

 after lunch on the second day of the 

 conference. 



Registration for the conference is $45 

 ($55 after October 25). This includes 

 handout material, lunch, tours, break 



refreshments and the Aqua-Food Festival, 

 featuring heavy hors d'oeuvres made from 

 Tar Heel aquaculture products. 



For registration information, contact 

 Debra Williams at 919/338-6200. 



If you missed the wave of aquatic 

 fashion that swept through North Carolina 

 during the statewide shoreline cleanup, 

 you didn't miss the boat. 



Big Sweep '90 T-shirts are still available 

 with a price tag that's hard to beat. You'l! 

 never be out of style in the colorful 

 all-cotton T-shirt with the Big Sweep logo. 



Regional coordinator Diane Warrender 

 is pictured sporting hers in this issue. Take 

 a look! 



To order, send $6 per shirt to UNC Sea 

 Grant, Box 8605, NCSU, Raleigh, NC 

 27695. Please specify size (S,M,L,XL) and 

 quantity. Make checks payable to The Big 

 Sweep. 



Make an environmental statement and 

 help a worthy cause; order a Big Sweep 

 T-shirt today while quantities last. 



Fishermen in South America are taking 

 some tips from the Turks on who to consult 

 about crabs. 



A group of 15 fishermen and manage- 

 ment representatives visited Sea Grant 

 Marine Advisory Service agent Wayne 

 Wescott in October for a lesson on crab- 

 bing and trawl fisheries. 



' They're very interested in our blue crab 

 fishery because they're thinking about 

 starting a fishery themselves," Wescott 

 says. "This might even result in some con- 

 sulting from Sea Grant to South America." 



Wescott is not a stranger to these out-of- 

 country experiences. 



In January 1988, he traveled to Turkey to 

 give advice on developing a soft crab shed- 

 ding industry on the Mediterranean Sea. 



South America has a red crab that is 

 larger than our blue crab, Wescott says. 

 The fishermen there are also interested in 

 our trawl fishery. 



Wescott says the meeting was "an effort 

 to bring them up to date on the tech- 

 nologies in North Carolina." 



As cold snaps clear 

 the air in autumn, the blue- 

 fish begin their fall "run," or 

 migration. And when the 

 blues are running, recrea- 

 tional anglers line Outer 

 Banks beaches like gulls on a pier. 



Fishermen land "tailor blues," or snap- 

 pers, which may weigh only a few pounds. 

 Or occasionally they haul in big "whopper 

 choppers." They can tip the scales at 

 almost 20 pounds. 



Whatever the size, bluefish are voracious 

 feeders. They whip through schools of 

 small baitfish, leaving a trail of blood, gore 

 and fish parts for swooping sea gulls to 

 devour. 



The diving gulls trace the path of the 

 blues for fishermen anxious to cast a line 

 And anglers are almost always rewarded 

 when they heave their lures and hooks 

 amidst the feeding frenzy. Even unbaited 

 hooks will score hits. 



Catching blues is the easy part. Know- 

 ing when to stop depends on how much 

 you like the fish and how quickly you can 

 eat what you keep. 



Bluefish, like other predacious fish, have 

 powerful digestive enzymes that cause the 

 flesh to spoil quickly. If bluefish are not 

 gutted or iced quickly, they can acquire a 

 fishy taste and mushy texture 



Joyce Taylor, Sea Grant's seafood 

 education specialist, makes these 

 recommendations. 



• Keep only what you plan to eat within 

 a few days. Release the others. 



• Gut and ice bluefish immediately. 

 Keep the fish iced as you transport it home. 



• If you plan to freeze any of the fillets, 

 Taylor recommends glazing— a technique 

 of coating the fish with a gelatin-and- 

 lemon mix. For a copy of the glazing 

 instructions, send for a copy of Bringing 

 the Catch Home. Ask for UNC-SG-86-26. 

 The cost is 50 cents. 



• If you do freeze your catch, be sure to 

 label your package with the date. Bluefish 

 do not have a long storage life and you 

 should plan to eat the frozen fillets within a 

 few weeks. 



