Aquaculture and Fisheries Commons^™

Efficiency Of Haul-Seine Cull Panels: A Comparison Of Size Selectivity And Relative Release Second Season, Christian Hagar

Reports

In 2001, eight bycatch reduction panels were .placed in a haul-seine pocket in order to examine fishes' release. Each panel contained fourteen rings 1 718 • in diameter and six 5 118 • long and 29132 • high. The number of rings totaled 112 and slots totaled 48. Release tests were conducted fourteen times from March to November. Study sites were located along the southern shore of the York River and at its mouth where it enters the Chesapeake Bay. Panels allowed 50% of the croaker < 9.6" (245mm), 50% of the flounder < 13.1" " (333mm), 42% of the spot< 7.9 " (200mm), and 60% of the stripe rs < 10.4" (265mm) and 40 % of the weakfish< 12.2" (310mm). that were pocketed to escape. However, very few small croaker were caught and 42% of the undersized flounder, 43% of the undersized spot, 16% of the undersized striped bass and 95% of the undersized weakfish were gilled and thus prevented from panel interaction. Gilling reduced overall release percentages for flounder to 29%, spot to 24% and weakfish to 2%. Statistical analysis of flounder and spot release revealed probabilities of occurrence of < .0005 showing that release of pocketed fishes below specified sizes was highly significant. Croaker and striped bass were not statistically examined due to small sample sizes. The study shows that release panels can reduce culling effort by passively releasing sub-marketable fishes, thus improving catch per unit effort, without profit loss.

Raising Spot (Leiostomus Xanthurus) Commercially For Sale As Live Bait In The Commonwealth Of Virginia, John Vigliotta

Reports

Create a method lo raise spot for sale as live bait successfully in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Artificial Reef Grow-Out, Jeff Hammer

Reports

The purpose of this project, was to address the possibility of improving upon the cun-ent grow out procedures currently being used by the oyster aquaculture industty. I.e. Taylor floats - Rack and bag.

As stated in the proposal, the current adopted method of raising oysters is to use Taylor floats. This method has proven to be effective in producing market sized oysters in 1- 2 years, although intensive labor cost and high fouling rates decrease profit margins considerably. Also the availability of suitable sites is now under increased regulations and is not welcomed in some waterfront communities.

My proposal was …

Comparative Study Of Seed From Northern And Southern Hatcheries, Joshua Merritt, Paige G. Ross

Reports

Seed from Northern and Southern (hereafter called local) hatcheries was procured in May 2000. Oysters delivered by the Northern hatchery were on time and of the desired size ~3mm). Seed from the local hatchery, however, arrived several days later and were too small to go into field nursery containers and were subsequently held in upwellers and then transferred to the field nursery gear. Figure 1 shows growth as measured by mean shell height (mm) for both strains. Note that the local seed took N20 days longer to reach grow-out size (indicated by first sieve).

Growing Soft Clams (Mya Arenaria) Commercially In The Commonwealth Of Virginia, John Vigliotta

Reports

Growing Soft Clams (Mya arenaria) commercially in the Commonwealth of Virginia was proposed with the objective to raise soft clams from 2 mm to market size in less than two years. Two different grow out methods were investigated. The first method was land based, reusing water from our existing shellfish nurse1y system. The second method consisted of trays deployed into open water on our leased grounds in the Ware River of Virginia.

Development Of A Live Fish Market Through The Use Of A New Live Holding Gear That Will Reduce Fish Mortality, Warren M. Crosby

Reports

The purpose of this project was to develop a live fish market through the use of new live holding gear that would also reduce fish mortality. There is a need for watermen to learn how to keep their fish product alive, as opposed to the current practice of icing fish down. Fish that are iced down will only keep for twenty-one days, as far as safe consumer food consumption is concerned. The market buyer knows this and the market price reflects this. If the watermen were able t.o develop a process in which to hold the fish alive and sell …

Hard Clam Grow-Out Using Fenced-In System Vs. Traditional Nets, Linda Crewe

Reports

The purpose of the grant project was to see if there would be less maintenance involved using the fence system vs. nets on the bottom and, also whether the clams in the fence system would grow larger than the clams under the nets on the bottom because they would be less restricted by sand building up on top of them.

Application Of High Pressure Processing To Virginia’S Oyster Industry, George Flick, Stephanie Penn, Mailin Oey, Bridget Meadows

Reports

High pressure processing (HPP) has been shown to be an effective non-thermal processing treatment for shellfish. The consumption of raw oysters has been identified as a potentially serious food safety hazard for both normal and at-risk individuals. HPP can be used to reduce populations of Vibrio spp. in oysters while also releasing the abductor muscle from the shell. The Virginia oyster and quahog clam industries can benefit from the reduced labor needed to shuck the shellfish, an increased shelf life, and the reduced risk of selling a potentially hazardous product. Research indicates that Vibrio spp., fecal coliforms, and aerobic plate …

Feasibility Study For Machine Processing Croakers Into Fillets And For Forming The Fillets Into Larger Portions, Daniel Kaufman, Robert A. Fisher, Wanchese Fish Company

Reports

The purpose of this project was to discover ways to economically process croakers into forms the market would more readily accept. Several manufacturing companies' processing machines were investigated. Two manufacturing companies' processing machines were brought to Hampton for testing. No company makes machinery specifically designed to process croaker. Small croaker fillets were also bound into larger fillets successfully. Processing machines were identified that will work and were purchased. The machinery is currently being successfully used to produce croaker fillets for both the frozen and fresh market. However, the machines are still being modified to improve the quality of the cut. …