National Seafood Inspection Laboratory – NOAA Teacher at Sea Blog

NOAA Teacher at Sea Kimberly Lewis
NOAA Ship: Oregon II
July 1 -July 16 2010

Mission: SEAMAP Summer Groundfish Survey
Geographical Area of Cruise: Gulf of Mexico
Date: Sunday, July 8, 2010

July 8, shallow trawls to deep trawls to no trawling today

Weather Data from the Bridge

Time: 2015 (8:15pm)
Position: Latitude = 27.20.39 N; Longitude = 096.35.21 W
Present Weather: Could cover 90%
Visibility: 4-6 nautical miles
Wind Speed: 15 knots
Wave Height: 2-4 feet
Sea Water Temp: 28.6 C
Air Temperature: Dry bulb = 28.5 C; Wet bulb = 26.7 C
Barometric Pressure: 1008.27 mb

Science and Technology Log

Since setting out on Friday we’ve headed south along the Gulf coast of Texas almost to the Mexican border, and now we’re heading back north but farther offshore, in deeper water. As a result our trawls are pulling up a deep-water assemblage of species different from those we saw in shallower waters a few days ago. There is still no sign of oil in this part of the Gulf, but we’re still taking samples of fish and shrimp for analysis to make sure there’s no contamination here from the BP- Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

Ten-foot seas are predicted for tonight so we’re heading north along the Texas coast, away from the storm, and we’ve put away the fishing gear until it gets calmer.

Last log we talked about FSCS (Fisheries Scientific Computer System). So what is it, how is it used, and what is so great about it?

FSCS, commonly pronounced ‘fiscus’, is an automated system for recording the massive amount of biological and oceanographic data generated 24 hours a day by NOAA scientists during fisheries surveys. During a trawl survey, fish and invertebrates from each haul are sorted, counted and weighed by species. Scientists record data from individual fish, such as sex, weight, length and even stomach contents, resulting in tens of thousands of new data points every day. Before NOAA rolled out FSCS in 2001 aboard the NOAA ship Albatross IV, scientists recorded all data by hand, an incredibly tedious process. With FSCS, however, data are recorded digitally which is much faster, allows integration of biological and oceanographic data, and enables NOAA to obtain critical real-time information to assess and manage the health of the marine ecosystem and individual fish stocks.

Kim FSCS — Here I am entering data at one of the two FSCS stations aboard the Oregon II.

FSCS uses a Limnoterra FMB4 (fish measuring board) which has a magnetic pen to upload the length of an organism within a millimeter (mm) range, and computer software that annotates all of the data with information such as length, mass, sex, etc. The software also lists species scientific names which can be selected into a short list so scientists can more quickly select organisms from a list. Special labels can be printed for specimen samples that are to be shipped to other scientists and to the National Seafood Inspection Laboratory which was started in Pascagoula, MS.

Personal Blog:

My last shift Wednesday 0000-1200 hrs. was very good. I was over my sea sickness, I had 8 hours straight of good sleep, and we did a good job on night shift with keeping up with our stations.

This photo shows a brown shrimp being measured for length. The magnetic pen to the right of the shrimp marks the spot, the measurement is then sent to the computer.

Our chef, Walter has been feeding us very well. The portions are so big that I can’t clean my plate. As you can guess, we have had shrimp several times, and after measuring and identifying shrimp every night for 12 hours I don’t know if I will be that anxious to eat shrimp for a while!My Thursday 0000-1200 shift was canceled due to weather as mentioned in the earlier part of today’s blog. So now I am catching up on emails, blogs, and laundry. We should be trawling again within the next 24 hours.

NOAA Teacher at Sea
Nicolle Vonderheyde
Onboard NOAA Ship Pisces
June 14 – July 2, 2010

Nicolle von der Heyde
NOAA Ship Pisces
Mission: SEAMAP Reef Fish Survey
Geographical Area of Cruise: Gulf of Mexico
Dates: Saturday, June 19

Weather Data from the Bridge

Time: 1000 hours (10:00am)
Position: latitude = 27°34 N, longitude = 096°28 W
Present Weather: mostly clear
Visibility: > 10 nautical miles
Wind Direction: SSE Wind Speed: 13 knots
Wave Height: 2 feet
Sea Water Temp: 29.5°C
Air Temperature: dry bulb = 29.4°C, wet bulb = 27.8°C

Science and Technology Log

One of the goals of the SEAMAP Reef Fish survey is to monitor the health and abundance of reef fish to establish limits on how much fish the fishing industry can take out of Gulf waters. SEAMAP stands for Southeast Area Monitoring and Assessment Program and is a State/Federal/University program for collection, management and dissemination of fishery-independent data and information in the southeastern United States.

Due to the oil spill in the Gulf, the fish we capture will be weighed, measured, frozen, and delivered to the Seafood Inspection Laboratory (NSIL) in Mississippi to be tested for hydrocarbons (oil) or other contamination to ensure that the seafood is safe to eat. Since the oil spill is far to the east of where we are doing the survey, our data will serve as a baseline and be compared to future studies to see what the extent and future impact of the oil will be in these waters.

The fish are taken out of the Chevron Trap or off the Bandit Reel and brought into the wet lab.

The first measurement we take is the weight (or mass) of the fish in kilograms (kg) using a motion compensating scale. One scientist will take the measurements while another records the data in a data table.

Next, we take three different measurements of length by placing the fish on a board that has a metric measuring tape attached. All length measurements are measured in millimeters (mm). First, we take the Total Length (TL) measurement which is from the mouth of the fish to the longest point on the tail. Then we measure the Fork Length (FL) from the mouth of the fish to the indention of the tail. The last measurement is the Standard Length (SL) which is from the mouth of the fish to the base of the tail.

Personal Log

I love having another Teacher at Sea with me to share this experience and discuss ideas for lessons based on the research we are conducting on board. What’s even better is Melinda’s enthusiasm about jumping right in and getting her hands dirty. She has no problem handling the slippery, stinky squid that is used to bait the Chevron trap (the Snapper in the top left photo didn’t get a chance to finish his last meal) or grabbing a slimy Red Snapper that has dorsal fin spikes and gill rakers as sharp as razor blades. For me, it’s taken a little getting used to. Just look at my facial expressions during my first attempt at measuring the fish.

Red Snapper did not get a chance to finish its last meal

What really gets me is the fish could just be lying there motionless one second, and then the next it begins to thrash and jump and flip itself right over…it startles me every time. After this first attempt at measurement, I began using thick gloves with grip to handle the fish – it helped.

Occasionally there is time at the end of the day for the crew on board to do some fishing. Just before sunset is prime time to catch fish, although so far, besides the jackpot reeled in the day we found the dead Sperm Whale, there have only been a few catches. One great phrase I’ve heard uttered by the crew more than once after over an hour of patiently waiting for the line to jerk is, “Well, that’s why they call it ‘fishing’, not ‘catching’.” I must admit it’s a peaceful way to end a long day of work.