Coastwatch 



Managing Editor 

 Katie Mosher 



Senior Editors 

 Ann Green 

 Pam Smith 



Contributing Editors 

 Cynthia Henderson, Lilly Loughner 



Designer 

 L. Noble 



Circulation Manager 

 Sandra Harris 



The North Carolina Sea Grant College Program 



is a federal/state program that promotes 

 stewardship of our coastal and marine resources 



through research, extension and education. 

 It joined the National Sea Grant College Network 

 in 1970 as an institutional program. Six years later. 



it was designated a Sea Grant College. 

 Today, North Carolina Sea Grant supports research 

 projects, a 15-member extension program and a 

 communications staff. Ron Hodson is director. 

 The program is funded by the U.S. Department 

 of Commerce's National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

 Administration and the state through the 

 University of North Carolina 

 Coastwatch (ISSN 1068-784X) 

 is published six times a year by the 

 North Carolina Sea Grant College Program, 

 North Carolina State University, Box 8605. 

 Raleigh, North Carolina 27695-8605. 

 Telephone: 919/515-2454. Fax: 919/515-7095. 

 Subscriptions are $15. 

 E-mail: katie_mosher@ncsu.edu 

 World Wide Web address: 

 http://www.ncseagrant.erg 

 Periodical Postage paid at Raleigh, N.C. 



POSTMASTER: Send address changes to 



Coastwatch North Carolina Sea Grant, 

 North Carolina State University, Box 8605, 

 Raleigh, NC 27695-8605. 



North Carolina ^BB^ 



Front cover and table of contents photos 

 of the Alligator River Refuge by Ken Taylor. 



Printed on recycled paper. 



COASTAL 



TIDINGS 



Giant Salvinia, on the federal noxious weed list, has been inadvertently spread by water gardeners. 



Let the Buyer Beware 



I ntemet shoppers need to be aware that 

 some plants and seeds for sale as ornamentals to 

 home gardens may be hazardous to the environ- 

 ment. 



Many online vendors sell plants that appear 

 on the federal noxious weed list — invasive spe- 

 cies that choke out crops, gardens, forests and 

 waterways. 



Along with raising consumer awareness, 

 researchers at the National Science Foundation's 

 Center for Integrated Pest Management at North 

 Carolina State University hope to nip the problem 

 in the bud. 



To halt the Internet sale of noxious weeds, 

 center researchers, in partnership with the U.S. 

 Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant 

 Health Inspection Service, are developing a com- 

 puter program that searches for Web sites selling 

 noxious weeds. 



The search engine, called Agricultural 

 Internet Monitoring System, will spot the sites, 

 and notify venders that they must stop selling 

 illegal plants. Violators who refuse to comply will 

 be prosecuted or fined. 



Each year, state and federal agencies spend 

 millions of dollars to fight invasive plant species, 

 such as purple loosestrife, that chokes both fresh 

 and saltwater wetlands and reduces wildlife 

 habitat. 



North Carolina Sea Grant, in collaboration 

 with NC State, also has been in the forefront of 

 the public awareness campaign. A Field Guide 

 to Invasive Aquatic and Wetland Plants has been 

 widely distributed through Sea Grant programs 

 across the country. To order one, send a check 

 for $1 5 to North Carolina Sea Grant, NC State 

 University, Campus Box 8605, Raleigh, NC 

 27695-8605. - P.S. 



In the Next Issue of Coastwatch 



Travel with Ann Green to the famed Fulton Fish Market to learn how North Carolina seafood 

 is transported from local docks to the world's dinner table. And Pam Smith introduces a trio of 

 North Carolina coastkeepers who are helping to focus public attention on important coastal issues. 



2 WINTER 2004 



