New Net Could Help Fishermen Reeling Over Sturgeon Listing
Waterman George Trice has been collaborating with scientists for eight years to collect data on Atlantic sturgeon.
Fisheries & Aquaculture
What We Do
Virginia Sea Grant aims to maintain sustainable and thriving commercial and recreational fisheries and aquaculture production in Virginia through cutting edge research and "feet on the boat" extension work. Extension staff at VIMS and Virginia Tech specialize in fishing gear design, recreational fisheries, and finfish and shellfish aquaculture.
Extension projects include:
- Sustainable Commercial Fisheries
- Virginia Game Fish Tagging Program
- Fisheries Resource Grant Program
- Aquaculture Program at VIMS Marine Advisory Services
- Virginia Aquaculture Conference
- Aquaculture Program at Virginia Tech's Virginia Seafood Agricultural Research and Extension Center (VSAREC)
Current research and extension work is featured below
Virginia Sea Grant Director Appointed to National Research Council Committee
This March, Virginia Sea Grant Director Troy Hartley was appointed to a national committee that will evaluate the effectiveness of fisheries management and present findings in a document to Congress.
Trawling for a Better Way to Assess Fish Health
On a warm morning last August, Ryan Schloesser and his labmate, student Lauren Nys, trawled off Oyster, VA. After a summer filled with collecting fish, they worked with experienced ease, throwing around jokes as smoothly as they tossed their nets behind the boat. What they pull up in their nets should help fisheries managers better predict the size of fish populations.
Welcoming a New ‘Class’ of Volunteer Taggers
The Virginia Game Fish Tagging Program (VGFTP) trained 16 new volunteer taggers on Tuesday March 27 at VIMS. The new “class” of volunteers came from as close as Gloucester and as far away as the Elizabeth City, N.C.
Take the Survey About Your Seafood Habits, Consumption
A new partnership between Virginia Sea Grant and the College of William and Mary is exploring whether a community-supported fishery is a feasible means to help reverse this trend by promoting greater consumption of locally harvested fish and shellfish.
2011′s Top Volunteer Fish Taggers Recognized
Volunteers in Virginia’s Game Fish Tagging Program tagged more than 19,000 fish in 2011, and on February 24, volunteer anglers who out-tagged their colleagues in any of 12 categories, including most tagged fish overall, most recaptured fish, and most tagged fish of a single species were recognized for their efforts. First place taggers in each category received a plaque, and runners-up received a tackle bucket with fishing gear provided by the Bass Pro Shop.
VIDEO: Economic Values of Traits in Salmon
Peter Kube is Quantitative Geneticist at Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation in Hobart, Australia. Kube’s research in selective breeding of salmon, abalone, and Pacific oysters has lead to important tools for industry, including a way to calculate a breeding value for desired trait combinations. Kube is partnering with VIMS ABC researchers Anu Frank-Lawale and [...]
Tasting the Bay
Even if you’ve tried raw oysters, you may have never really tasted one. Like wine, oysters grown in different areas taste different because they take on the characteristics of their environment. Simply slurping your oysters means you miss these delicate flavors.
At the second annual Halfshell Oyster Tasting event in November, the Tidewater Oyster Gardeners Association (TOGA) helped more than 200 people learn to really taste oysters. Attendees put their taste buds to the test trying to differentiate oysters from six growers who raise oysters at different places along the Chesapeake Bay. Virginia Sea Grant (VASG) and our extension partners were proud cosponsors of this fun event.
Oyster Growers Learn How to Stand Out
The new buzzword in oyster marketing is “differentiation” as Virginia Sea Grant Business and Marketing Specialist Dan Kauffman explained at the recent Differentiated Halfshell Marketing Workshop sponsored by Virginia Sea Grant, Virginia Tech, Virginia Marine Products Board, and Virginia Institute of Marine Science.
Taggers Help U.S. Vets Fish, Tag, and Heal
Watching Dave Conklin cast is poetry in motion. In one smooth movement, his arm circles up and out to the side, zipping the line through the air. Dave’s graceful casting is an achievement, one that he enjoys sharing with other veterans in Project Healing Waters.
Selecting Stronger Oyster Larvae Without Weakening Adults
Oyster aquaculture production in Virginia has increased tenfold in the past four years due, for the most part, to the development and dissemination of disease-tolerant oyster stocks. Anu Frank-Lawale of VIMS is examining whether larval growth traits and survival can be improved without compromising important traits in adult oysters, such as disease tolerance, growth rate, [...]
Improving Treatment to Reduce Oyster Disease
In 2010, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced a regulatory change that would require treatment of all oysters harvested in the Gulf of Mexico for raw consumption for the bacteria Vibrio vulnificus. VIMS researchers Howard Kator and Kimberly Reece worked with oyster growers Thomas Gallivan, A.J. Erskine, and Tommy Leggett to identify whether a [...]
VIDEOS: Community Supported Fisheries and Sustainable Consumption
In December, Virginia Sea Grant invited two scholars to participate in the fall 2011 Visiting Scholar Seminar Series to discuss consumer behavior and community supported fisheries. These talks precede Virginia Sea Grant’s spring research project, which will investigate whether Virginian’s would participate in community supported fishery.
VIDEO: Burreson’s Contributions to Science, Policy Recognized with 2011 Mathias Medal
On a mid-October evening, Gene Burreson, who colleagues consider “one of maybe two of the most important figures in the field” of fish and shellfish pathology, stood before a room of resource managers, industry members, scientists, and family and humbly stated, “Although this award is only given to one person, science is not done alone. I’ve been lucky that I’ve always hired good people to work with me.”
Watermen Eligible for 2012 Funding, Invited to Learn More
Virginia Institute of Marine Science Marine Extension Program will host two workshops to help watermen and aquaculturists put together applications for 2012 Fisheries Resource Grant funding.
Making Aquaculture Sustainable in Virginia and Beyond
Researchers, watermen, business owners and other aquaculture enthusiasts gathered in Williambsurg for the Virginia Aquaculture Conference.
Taking Spadefish from ‘New Species’ to ‘Aquaculture Species’
Summer Communications Intern Kate Schimel reports on research into the spawning and food needs of the Atlantic spadefish. Studies like these are the first step towards developing a new species for aquaculture.
Verifying a Promising New Oyster Treatment Method
Current treatments to reduce the occurrence of the bacteria Vibrio vulnificus in oysters destined for the half-shell market include expensive radiation and heating processes, which may compromise the quality of the oyster meat. After positive results from a small preliminary study, VIMS Researchers Howard Kator, Kimberly Reece, and Corinne Audemard are conducting a larger follow-up [...]
Strengthening Oysters and the ‘Bottom Line’
When geneticists began breeding oysters in hatcheries more than 10 years ago, the goal was simple: cultivate oysters that could resist diseases that were devastating wild populations. Today, oyster growers may need more from their oysters to remain competitive. VIMS researchers Anu Frank-Lawale and Stan Allen are partnering with Peter Kube from Commonwealth Scientific and [...]
Would a Community Supported Fishery Work in Virginia?
When you think of eating local, what foods fill your imaginary plate? Maybe you think of vegetables and eggs, but what about fish? Would you even know where to find locally caught or farmed seafood if you wanted it? This spring Virginia Sea Grant will lead a team to determine whether it would make sense for local seafood producers could bring their catch to a community supported fishery.
