Armstrong, a recognized estuarine 

 authority, has extensively researched 

 the relationship between stream flow 

 and estuarine productivity, a growing 

 problem in North Carolina as more 

 coastal lands are drained via ditches to 

 the estuaries. Armstrong will speak to 

 Lundie Spence's NCSU oceans class 

 and present a seminar to the NCSU 

 Department of Zoology. He will be 

 available for prearranged private con- 

 sultations on November 18 and for 

 consultations with state water- 

 management officials on November 19. 

 If you would like to make an appoint- 

 ment to talk with Armstrong, call the 

 Sea Grant office at (919) 737-2454. 



©For those folks plan- 

 ning fall trips to the 

 North Carolina coast, 

 don't forget to include a 

 visit to one of the N. C. 

 Marine Resources Cen- 

 ters. At the Roanoke 

 Island center, a new wave tank exhibit 

 will be on display in November. And 

 field trips are planned to explore the 

 salt marsh and to watch the fall migra- 

 tion of birds and waterfowl. For more 

 information, call Hilda Livingstone at 

 (919) 473-3493. 



Every Saturday and Sunday at 3 

 p.m. during October and November, 

 the Bogue Banks center staff will pre- 

 sent a live sea creature program featur- 

 ing such ocean and marsh notables as 

 the blue crab, the hermit crab, the oc- 

 topus and the oyster. Also on the 

 agenda each Wednesday and Saturday 

 during the fall is a children's story 



time. Center staff will read from a 

 selection of children's nature books. 

 For more information about these 

 programs, call (919) 726-0121. 



And, if you're interested in foraging 

 for your dinner, plan to attend the 

 Wild Seafoods Day, October 30 at the 

 Ft. Fisher center. Participants will 

 gather seafood and plants from the 

 marsh and beach, then prepare, cook 

 and eat them. Preregistration is re- 

 quired. For more information, call 

 (919) 458-8257. 



§ Fishermen get your 

 reels ready and your 

 four-wheel drive vehicles 

 packed. Surf-fishing 

 season is here. Fall is the 

 best time of year for surf 

 fishing. Fish, fat from a 

 summer in the estuary, are ocean- 

 bound, often moving along the coast 

 before swimming seaward. 



And while surf fishing packs a lot of 

 excitement, Leon Abbas, UNC Sea 

 Grant's marine recreation specialist, 

 says it can be hazardous too. Waves, 

 the primary hazard, can knock a 

 fisherman off his feet and fill a pair of 

 chest waders in seconds. Unless the 

 fisherman can free himself of the 

 waders quickly, he can drown. 



Abbas advises that a fisherman 

 choose a spot where the water isn't too 

 rough. Remember the surface under 

 the water is not smooth. Holes, bars 

 and trenches create varying depths 

 along the bottom that aren't always 

 detectable from the surface. 



Fishermen should consider tide 



changes. "What seemed to be a com- 

 fortable level when you waded out 

 may change behind you," Abbas says. 

 Fishermen also should keep an eye on 

 the weather, watching for changes in 

 wind direction or sudden storms. 



Abbas suggests that fishermen carry 

 only minimal equipment into the surf. 

 Hand gaffs or knives should be covered 

 or kept in sheaths. 



And whether you're a novice or an 

 old salt, don't go night fishing alone. 



UNC Sea Grant mini-grant funds 

 have been awarded to the North 

 Carolina State University Department 

 of Food Science to support a study 

 aimed at developing a baby food made 

 from fish. Laura Jane Mackintosh, a 

 masters' candidate in food science, will 

 be working to develop a new product 

 that will be acceptable to mothers and 

 babies. The National Fisheries In- 

 stitute also will be contributing funds 

 to the study. 



Coastwatch is published monthly 

 except July and December by the Uni- 

 versity of North Carolina Sea Grant 

 College Program, 105 1911 Building, 

 North Carolina State University, 

 Raleigh, NC 27650-5001. Vol. 9, No. 9, 

 October, 1982. Dr. B.J. Copeland, 

 director. Neil Caudle, editor. Kathy 

 Hart and Cassie Griffin, staff writers. 

 Second-class postage paid at Raleigh, 

 NC 27611. 



COASTWATCH 



105 1911 Building 



North Carolina State University 



Raleigh, NC 27650 



Second-class postage paid 

 at Raleigh, NC 27611 

 (ISSN 0161-8369) 



