Study finds warming waters threaten young lobsters, BDN reports

The Bangor Daily News and Associated Press reported on newly published research that found the Gulf of Maine’s lobster population could suffer if water temperatures keep rising. The research, conducted at the University of Maine Darling Marine Center and Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, is the only published study focused on how larvae of the American lobster will be affected by two aspects of climate change — ocean acidification and warming. Larvae raised at 66 degrees “developed twice as fast as they did in the current temperature of 61 degrees Fahrenheit, and they had noticeably lower survival [rates],” said Jesica Waller, a graduate student at DMC and lead author of the study. “Really only a handful made it to the last larval stage.” Rick Wahle, a UMaine professor and co-author of the report, said the study was aimed at anticipating changes Maine’s most valuable fishery will face. “Last year, Maine harvested nearly half a billion dollars in lobsters,” Wahle said. “With lobsters now comprising 80 percent of the state’s overall fishery value [of $616 million], Maine’s coastal economy is perilously dependent on this single fishery. We only need to look at the die-offs south of Cape Cod to see how climate change is having an impact.” Bob Bayer, director of the UMaine Lobster Institute, did not dispute the findings of the study, but said there other indicators that affect lobsters’ survival that suggest increased water temperatures may be beneficial, the article states. “Mortality from predation could actually be reduced” by warming waters, he said, adding that although the warming of the Gulf of Maine is a cause for concern, the impact of that change “doesn’t look like doom and gloom to me.” Portland Press Herald, Star-Telegram, WLBZ (Channel 2), WABI (Channel 5) and Maine Public carried the AP report, and CBC Radio interviewed Waller for a segment titled “Hot lobsters.Christian Science Monitor, Food & Wine, The Daily Meal, Boston magazine, Phys.org, Gothamist, Mainebiz, Nature World News, International Business Times, Newswise , Tech Times, Dive Photo Guide and Fish Information & Services also reported on the study.