91制片厂

While lobster and scallops tend to get much of the attention as the region鈥檚 most popular鈥攏ot to mention the most valuable鈥攕hellfish, a close third is likely something you haven鈥檛 seen in your local grocery store very often, if at all: the channeled whelk. That鈥檚 because听international demand, as well as the shrinking of other regional fisheries like lobster,听has diminished channeled whelk fisheries in its native habitat鈥攖he Atlantic seaboard from Massachusetts down to Florida鈥攔esulting in stricter size and trap limits and, in some states, the temporary closing of fisheries. Fortunately, collaborative research led by 91制片厂 scientists and alumni aims to make the industry more sustainable and result in the resurgence of the species, as well as preserve horseshoe crabs, which are often used as whelk bait and are already at risk due to their unique blue blood that is prized by the biomedical industry.

, a research associate professor in the department of biological sciences, and , executive director of the , are leading the research, which is supported by a grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) . Along with co-PIs , professor emeritus, and Steve Jury 鈥�99G, as well as , , Megan Molinari 鈥�21, Massachusetts whelk fishermen and representatives from multiple public and private partners, Fairchild and Edmundson are addressing two key industry issues: the use of traps that don鈥檛 allow for sublegal (under the legal size) whelk to escape and the common practice of baiting whelk with chopped up horseshoe crab.

Modifying Channeled Whelk Traps

Working out of the 91制片厂 (CML) in New Castle, N.H., the team has been testing modified whelk traps with escape vents and bait recipes that use little to no horseshoe crab for the past two years. This whelk fishing season, which is from April to December in Massachusetts, they will begin working with local fishermen to determine if听modified traps result in less sorting of sublegal whelk and if听new bait recipes work as well as鈥攐r better than鈥攖he horseshoe crab bait.

The scientists have been testing modified whelk traps with escape vents, looking for a design that retains the greatest number of legal-sized whelks and lets out the most sublegal-sized whelks and that is also cost-effective for fishermen to do on their own. As part of their coursework, students in the (TECH 797) came up with and trialed a variety of modifications to find designs that are easy to install.

鈥淪ome whelk fishermen already modify their traps with escape vents,鈥� explained Fairchild, a scientist with the . 鈥淭he wants to see an escape vent added, so it鈥檚 only a matter of time before they mandate the change and a configuration that fishermen will need to use.鈥�

With the modifications they鈥檝e tested in the lab, the team hopes to bridge the gap between the fishermen and the resource management agencies to find something that鈥檚 effective and installable by the former and that meets the goals of the latter.

For McGrath, a dual major in and sustainability, working on this research allowed her to gain experience both in the lab and the field.

鈥淚 learned a lot about the research process and made a lot of connections,鈥� added McGrath. 鈥淎nd it鈥檚 because of my involvement in this research that I plan to pursue my master鈥檚 degree, and it has piqued my interest in working with fisheries in some way as part of my career.鈥�

Testing New Channeled Whelk Bait

On the bait side, the team is seeking an alternative to horseshoe crab, which are an ecologically important species as a key food source of migratory birds up and down the Eastern seaboard and a scientifically critical species used in the production of vaccines and other medicines due to the unique toxin-identifying quality of horseshoe crab blood. However, whelk and eel fishermen have used horseshoe crab as a preferred bait source for years and an alternative will need to meet several criteria to become widely used.

鈥淲helk fishermen all have unique recipes that they use for bait, however, the common denominator in all these is horseshoe crab, particularly female horseshoe crab,鈥� said Fairchild. 鈥淪o we need new bait recipes that can be made using no or low-cost materials, like seafood waste, that won鈥檛 cost more than what they are already using and鈥攎ost importantly鈥攖hat are as effective in attracting channeled whelk into the traps.鈥�

Channeled whelk don鈥檛 normally eat horseshoe crab in the wild鈥攖hey commonly predate on bivalves like oysters and clams鈥攕o it鈥檚 a bit of a mystery why it works so well as a bait source. At the Coastal Marine Lab, the 91制片厂 team has tested dozens of recipes, trying different combinations of everything from poultry byproduct meal and clam processing byproduct to invasive green crabs and surf clams that wash up on the beaches.

鈥淥nce we came up with our winning recipe consisting of clam bellies and green crab鈥揾eld together by a binder鈥攚e tested its preservation, how it could be stored frozen and then thawed for use,鈥� added Fairchild. 鈥淣ow we鈥檙e distributing them to local fishermen, who will trial them this season in a few of their traps to compare them to the horseshoe crab-based recipes they normally use.鈥�

Munley, who has a bachelor鈥檚 degree in marine, estuarine, and freshwater biology and a from 91制片厂, began working with channeled whelk in the summer of 2020. That year, she and Molinari started researching alternative baits for whelk fishing. When she began her master鈥檚 degree program, Munley continued with the whelk research she helped launch the previous year.

鈥淚 have really enjoyed researching channeled whelks and alternative baits in part because of the awesome team of people working on this project but also because this project is really the tale of two fisheries鈥攃hanneled whelk and horseshoe crabs,鈥� said Munley. 鈥淭here are a lot of things to consider when thinking about the sustainability of baits and these conversations are becoming more and more common among various fisheries.鈥�

According to Edmundson, with the growing potential for future regulations to decrease or eliminate the harvest of horseshoe crabs, the pressure to find an alternative and effective bait is critical.

鈥淚t could be the difference in this fishery existing or disappearing,鈥� Edmundson added.