THE BACK PAGE 



"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 

 and workshops, and new publica- 

 tions. For more information on 

 any of the projects described, con- 

 tact the Sea Grant office in 

 Raleigh (919/737-2454). 



Part of the Roanoke 

 River basin , the 

 Camassia Slopes in 

 Northampton County, 

 harbors more than two 

 dozen species of 

 wildflowers designated 

 as endangered, uncommon or rare in 

 North Carolina. The most noteworthy 

 wildflower, Camassia scilloides, or 

 wild hyacinth, for which the area is 

 named, is an endangered "disjunct" 

 because it is usually found only west of 

 the Appalachian Mountains. 



At home in Midwestern river valleys 

 and prairies, the Camassia grows 

 thickly in the Roanoke River basin, 

 one of only two known occurrences in 

 North Carolina. Biologists believe the 

 flower's presence there can be at- 

 tributed to the area's unusual soil. The 

 soil, which is highly basic, is much like 

 the soil found in Midwestern river 

 basins and very unlike the acidic soils 

 found elsewhere in the Roanoke River 

 basin. Because of the different soil, the 

 slopes harbor such other endangered, 

 uncommon and rare plant species as 

 the James' sedge, the eastern wahoo, 

 the sessile trillium, the wild blue phlox, 

 the purple larkspur and the three-bird 

 orchid. 



The Camassia Slopes have been 

 donated by the Union Camp Corpora- 

 tion, a forest-products company, to 

 The Nature Conservancy, a non-profit 

 conservation organization, for preser- 

 vation. The preservation of the slopes 

 is part of a joint, long-range effort by 

 the state and The Nature Conser- 

 vancy, through its state chapter, to 

 protect the Roanoke River basin, a 

 refuge for many rare species. 



Jim Murray, director 

 of Sea Grant's Marine 

 Advisory Services, has 

 announced an opening 

 for a marine advisory 

 agent. Working from a 

 Manteo location, the 

 agent will be responsible for develop- 

 ing an extension education program for 

 10 counties in northeastern North 

 Carolina. Candidates must have a 

 knowledge of commercial fishing gear 

 and gear technology. A bachelor's 

 degree in marine or fisheries science 

 and/or experience in commercial 

 fisheries is preferred. 



Applicants should contact Dr. 

 William H. Queen, director, Institute 

 for Coastal and Marine Resources, 

 East Carolina University, Greenville, 

 N. C. 27834, or call (919) 757-6779. 

 Applications must be received by June 

 11. East Carolina University is an Af- 

 firmative Action/Equal Opportunity 

 Employer. 



A man pops the top of 

 his favorite beverage as 

 he leans back in his boat 

 waiting for a fish to 

 tickle his line. He tosses 

 the pop-top overboard. 

 A small fish, attracted 

 to the light-reflective top as it drifts 

 downward, attempts to swim through 

 the top. The ring won't slide over the 

 fish's fins. The fish is now encircled 

 with a pop-top that may mean its 

 death. 



Littering coastal water can be more 

 than just unattractive; it can kill and 

 maim wildlife. Three kinds of litter are 

 particularly dangerous to wildlife: 

 plastic six-pack rings, pop-tops from 

 aluminum cans and monofilament 

 fishing line. 



Plastic rings and monofilament line 

 can easily become wrapped around the 

 heads, necks and feet of waterfowl and 

 aquatic birds, disturbing their flight, 

 swimming and feeding abilities, often 

 with fatal results. 



Fish that become entangled in litter 

 may also die because the litter inter- 



feres with feeding, restricts swim- 

 ming, damages skin and scales, or in- 

 hibits growth. 



What can you do to prevent these 

 problems? Don't throw your trash into 

 the water. Keep a litter container with 

 a lid on board and use it. When at the 

 beach, pier or marina, use trash con- 

 tainers provided there, or take your 

 trash with you and discard it at home. 

 If you see litter floating on the water, 

 help the birds and fish. Pick it up. 



About 100 Florida 

 builders, architects, 

 engineers and officials 

 recently got some advice 

 from North Carolina on 

 how to build safer 

 coastal buildings. The 

 occasion was a workshop held March 

 25-26 in Pensacola Beach. The 

 workshop was sponsored by the 

 Federal Emergency Management 

 Agency. 



Spencer Rogers, Sea Grant's coastal 

 engineer, spoke to the group about 

 natural hazzards during hurricanes 

 and floods. He discussed the effects of 

 the storm surge, winds, waves and ero- 

 sion, and offered some guidelines on 

 how to select coastal building sites. 



Closer to home, the topic was ero- 

 sion when Rogers spoke to a group of 

 30 property-owners at a public hearing 

 conducted April 10 by the Topsail 

 Beach town council. Rogers explained 

 how and why beachfront and estuarine 

 erosion occur, and discussed the ad- 

 vantages and disadvantages of several 

 erosion-control techniques. 



Shipwrecks off North Carolina's 

 coast, like artificial reefs, attract and 

 shelter underwater life. They also at- 

 tract divers. But few regions can offer 

 such a wealth of shipwrecks, and 

 divers from across the country have 

 been trying to get reefs built in waters 

 near them. 



Jim Murray, director of UNC Sea 

 Grant's Marine Advisory Services, 

 spoke to many of those divers recently. 

 Continued on next page 



