ACCESSIBLE COAST: Discover Innovative N.C. Tourism in ACCESS

Venues across coastal North Carolina enhance visitors’ travel experiences. More than 400 accessible attractions are offered in ACCESS North Carolina, a vacation and travel guide for people with accessibility needs.

ACCESSIBLE COAST: SCIENCE VIA VARIED SENSES

In the five years Yirka has been on staff, the Raleigh museum has debuted technologies and programs enabling fully independent navigation for people of varying abilities. All exhibit content is available regardless of visual impairments or hearing loss.

AMAZING COAST: Animal Societies

Monogamous pairs. Fathers who carry the eggs. Murderous siblings. North Carolina is home to animals that have developed a multitude of ways to care for their young. Some of these adaptations are well known to humans. Others? Not so much.

BUILDING A BLUE ECONOMY IN NORTH CAROLINA

The ocean economy contributed $2.1 billion and 43,385 jobs to North Carolina’s economy in 2013, according to a new report by North Carolina Sea Grant and Duke University’s Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions.

COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH ON THE OUTER BANKS

Sitting outside a restaurant in Duck, North Carolina, a great partnership was expanded over a meal of local seafood in the fall of 2015.

Community Colleges Compete in Ballooning Challenge

This spring, six North Carolina teams took their scientific expertise out of this world. They participated in the third annual Community College High-Altitude Ballooning Team Challenge and Competition.

CURRENTS: Celebrating Two Colleagues

In the last few months of the year, North Carolina Sea Grant bade farewell to Sandra Harris, on our communications team, and Vanda Lewis, on our extension team.

CURRENTS: Identifying Innovative Recovery Strategies

Emergency Managers Partner with University Experts, Students

CURRENTS: Muddy Waters: Defining the 100-Year Flood

When used properly, the term “100-year flood” really means there is a 1-in-100, or 1 percent, chance of a flood occurring in a certain area in any given year. Given that probability, that flood is likely to occur, on average, once every 100 years over an even longer period of time. Similarly, you would call a flood with a 1-in-500, or 0.2 percent, chance of occurring every year a “500-year flood.”

CURRENTS: WRRI Conference Brings Together More Than Research

Members of The Nile Project gave a short performance during lunch on the first day of the conference. As the man behind the music, Mina Girgis acts as a linchpin, pulling together artists to create a unique sound for an important cause: sustaining the Nile River.

DEVELOPING NEW SEAFOOD PRODUCTS

Americans lead busy, active lives and have little time or desire to cook meals at home. We seek new flavors, textures and unique cuisines, and want options that are convenient to prepare and consume almost anywhere. Fresh, transportable meals featuring minimally processed ingredients, handcrafted quality and bold flavors characterize the most successful pre-prepared meals of the past few years.

DEVELOPING RECIPES, NOURISHING THE COMMUNITY

What’s in a blackened-fish taco? For most of us, it is simply fish, seasoning, salsa and tortillas. For Evan Ferguson and her high-school students, their tacos start with an underappreciated fish: cape shark. Then, their special recipe stirs in a desire for fresh, local seafood in the school cafeteria, mixed with the sweat and hard work of a fishing community.

Everything You Always Wanted to Know about Sex in the Sea

There are four survival instincts in the animal kingdom: feeding, fighting, fleeing and … reproducing. Let’s think about the last one: How do animals in marine environments procreate?

EXPANDING MARINE EDUCATION FROM SEA TO MOUNTAINS

It’s easy to believe Terri Kirby Hathaway when she says she has the “best job in the world.” Hathaway works as a marine education specialist with North Carolina Sea Grant, a position she’s held for 13 years.

EXPLORING NEW HORIZONS: Space Grant is on the Move

Formerly dean of Appalachian’s College of Arts and Sciences and now with a focus on science education, he notes that Space Grant’s advisors also are eager to see the program build upon successful interdisciplinary and multicampus initiatives of North Carolina Sea Grant and the Water Resources Research Institute of the University of North Carolina system. White leads all three programs, all with headquarters at NC State University.

FISHING FOR FEEDBACK

Right now, we are conducting a survey with North Carolina’s recreational anglers. We want to ensure our extension, education and research programs remain relevant to this group.

Flying Up

Members of the Lenoir-Rhyne University team participating in NASA’s Space Grant Eclipse Ballooning Project have their work cut out for them.

FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: A State of Thanks: Reflecting on Transformation and Renewal

From team retirements and departures to welcoming new partners, North Carolina Sea Grant has experienced its fair share of change this year — and will continue to do so in the coming year.

FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: Convening Conversations on Coastal Challenges and Solutions

North Carolina Sea Grant again is pleased to host North Carolina’s Coastal Conference on April 4 and 5. We invite you to consider the science, education and partnerships that are necessary for communities and ecosystems to thrive — from our coastal watersheds, along our Inner and Outer Banks, and to our nearshore waters.

FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: Finding Home in People, Places

I am struck with how my sense of place and belonging is embedded in a community of individuals, more than in a physical location. Perhaps this is true for you? But others may find their place based more on where they are. That sense of place surely deepens with longevity. Deep roots are built through history, and, frankly, hardships often bring out strengths of the ties within a community, a region, a nation.

FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: Here Comes the Sun: Illuminating Summer Fun, Sea Grant Stories

Our beaches and soundside communities indeed have changed over my lifetime. Yet their beauty and bounties persist in so many ways. Similarly, this issue of Coastwatch takes you on a range of explorations.

FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: Looking Forward To Spring: Research, Results and Renewal

Every winter, right around the first week of February, I start getting itchy feet. I need to get back outside, shake off the chill (well, we are in North Carolina after all), and check out what’s growing, swimming and happening along our coast.

Gaining an Education on the Water: Appreciating the Forces of Nature

Always a water lover growing up in a Great Lakes state, I found more to learn when I moved to the N.C. coastal town of Beaufort almost six years ago. With beautiful waters beckoning to me daily, I have taken advantage of my location to take more kayak, stand-up paddleboard and sailing trips out on the water than I can count.

Going with the Flow: Evaluating Flood Mitigation of the Cashie River

North Carolina Sea Grant and NC State University’s Biological & Agricultural Engineering Department have been working with local leaders to study the recent extreme flood events and evaluate flood mitigation methods. Bertie County secured a grant from the Golden Leaf Foundation to fund two studies of the Cashie River Basin and floodplain.

LEAVE IT TO BEAVER (DAMS)

Long, long ago in a wetland not very far away, nature’s architects sculpted the landscape to create places to live and food to eat. North American beavers altered the environment to fit their needs until the needs of humans drove them out of their jobs — and out of their homes.

LAST WORD: RENEWAL

3 cheers for the world, The hopeful soul that it is. Ever aging, Ever growing, Ever changing Life to dust and dust to life.

Making the Most of Oyster Reef Filtering

With a drastic decline in the state’s oyster population, the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are among many groups planting new beds to restore these bivalves.

LINKING WATER, FLOODS AND PUBLIC HEALTH

That reality offers great perspective as I am one of several researchers examining the link between flooding and public-health infrastructure in two coastal urban settings: Morehead City, North Carolina, and Charleston, South Carolina. We began our project in mid-2015, but Matthew and other large flooding events in 2016 have made our study particularly relevant.

MARINER’S MENU: Autumn Flavors That Bring Heat

While many of us are no longer at the beach and instead are returning to school and work, don’t let the distance from the waves be discouraging. There still are many ways to enjoy seafood into the autumn months. Fish markets are opening farther inland, making this week’s catch more accessible. Also, not all seafood recipes need a grill.

MARINER’S MENU: Falling for Oysters

Whether on the West or East coast, or anywhere in between, these oyster recipes from Mariner’s Menu: 30 Years of Fresh Seafood Ideas are sure to impress even the least adventurous holiday guest with their fresh simplicity.

MARINER’S MENU: Tastes from the Past Worth Repeating

For this Spring issue, I dusted off old copies of Coastwatch to search for recipes. Looking back, I found many recipes worth repeating, such as smoked bluefish and Gruyère quiche, pine bark stew, and squid salad.

MARINER’S MENU: As American as Southern Seafood

What's more American than apple pie? Historians might contest that the pie and the pioneer sprung from other cultures, and Native Americans were here before both.

MARINER’S MENU: Where There’s Smoke, There’s Grilled Seafood

Today, with all our advances and conveniences, we still love to cook outdoors over a flame. And it’s not just burgers and steaks anymore. A meal of fresh seafood, prepared simply outdoors and eaten in the company of friends, is one of life’s real pleasures.

NC MARINE FISHERIES FELLOWS: Where Are They Now?

Bringing cutting-edge data analysis and collection techniques to the attention of resource managers is a key strategy in planning for sustainable fisheries.

ON THE WATER: Celebrating Estuary Science: APNEP Marks 30 Years of Research, Partners

Fast forward to 2017: the Albemarle-Pamlico National Estuary Partnership, also known as APNEP, is celebrating 30 years of finding those answers through a watershed approach that takes the freshwater, brackish and saltwater parts of the estuary into account. The organization seeks to identify, protect and restore the significant resources of the Albemarle-Pamlico watershed through applied scientific research and outreach.

ON THE WATER: Crab Pots Collected from Coastal Waters

The North Carolina General Assembly selected North Carolina Sea Grant to administer the Crab Pot Removal Pilot Program. Sea Grant contracted with the N.C. Coastal Federation, which worked with the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries and its Marine Patrol, along with teams of commercial fishermen, for the project during the annual winter “no-potting” period.

PEOPLE AND PLACES: Discovering Down East on the Outer Banks National Scenic Byway

The beaches of the Outer Banks are legendary, but its roadways are steering into the spotlight. This summer, the Outer Banks National Scenic Byway is ready to guide visitors on an exploration of the culture and history of the North Carolina coast.

PEOPLE AND PLACES: Fellowships Focus on Policy, Water

“We recognized that there are groups of faculty and students, as well as communities in our state, who have been underserved and underrepresented in terms of water-related research,” notes Nicole Wilkinson, WRRI coordinator for research and outreach. “We wanted to target our funding in such a way that it created opportunities to address some of those gaps.”

Preserving Cultural Treasures

Cleaning and restoring historic documents and artifacts aren’t the first things you may think of in post-disaster emergency response. But to the staff at the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, it’s an important part of recovery.

PROJECT SNAPSHOTS: Peek Into Coastal North Carolina Research

“What is North Carolina Sea Grant?” I field that question whenever people ask about my job. “We support marine and coastal research in North Carolina,” is my usual response. There’s more than that, of course.

REELING IN HISTORY: DOCUMENTING THE 1997 FISHERIES REFORM ACT

The 1997 Fisheries Reform Act significantly changed the fisheries management process in North Carolina. Before the act, there were no comprehensive management plans for important fish and shellfish species. Anyone with $35 could buy a commercial fishing license, opportunities for public participation in management were few, and the board that sets fisheries policy, the North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission, was extraordinarily large with 17 members.

SCIENCE AT WORK: BUILDING STRONGER COASTAL COMMUNITIES

North Carolina Sea Grant’s efforts encompass topics in development, economies, ecosystems and traditions related to the state’s coast. Communities embody the concept, as they have weathered many storms. These days, the word also encompasses planning for and responding to a variety of economic and environmental challenges.

SEA SCIENCE: Growing Better Bivalves: Science, Local Knowledge Enhance N.C. Business

Media stories often cite Sandbar Oyster Company as an unlikely partnership between a scientist and a fisherman — a successful duo not only in the half-shell market, but also in ecological restoration.

SEA SCIENCE: Restoring Our Oysters: Dealing with the Sponge Problem

Niels Lindquist, an ecologist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Institute of Marine Sciences, noticed that many of the oysters served at roasts were difficult to open because of brittle shells. The oysters had small holes in their shells, a telltale sign of an infestation by the boring sponge, a common estuarine organism in the family Clionaidae.

SEA SCIENCE: Teaming Up with Nature to Restore Wilson Bay

It’s hard to imagine that not long ago, there wasn’t much life in and along these waters. Over the past 20 years, a community-wide partnership has transformed Wilson Bay in Jacksonville.

SEASONAL DREAMS AND DELIGHTS

In these winter months, juvenile fishes and crabs — also known as nekton — likely are missing their summer nursery habitat: seagrasses. Specific seagrass species die back once summer water temperatures get too hot. This is similar to tree leaves that change color in the autumn and eventually fall off. Seasonal shifts also can be found in seagrass habitats, with consequences for juvenile nekton.

SPREADING THE WORD ABOUT SOUTHERN OYSTERS

One of my main goals as North Carolina Sea Grant’s marine aquaculture specialist is to assist in the responsible and sustainable development of the state’s growing mariculture industry. A rapidly expanding sector of this industry in North Carolina is oyster farming.

SUN GAZING

Using special glasses and devices, millions of eyes turned skyward for a solar eclipse on Aug. 21.

TOXIC MARINE SNOW

Under the right conditions, ordinarily diminutive algae can form a slimy blanket over large swaths of coastal water — and cost communities millions of dollars.

Unraveling Mysteries of Ghost Forests

Far from being frighteningly fun, ghost forests are a growing concern along much of the East Coast. In North Carolina, they are increasingly common along the Albemarle-Pamlico Peninsula in the rural eastern part of the state.

WATCHING AND LEARNING ABOUT NORTH CAROLINA SEA GRANT

What is North Carolina Sea Grant? Ask 10 different people, and you’ll get 10 different answers.

WORKING TOGETHER: Communities Collaborate, Engage with Researchers

These are among the unique experiences galvanizing five new projects receiving funding from the N.C. Community Collaborative Research Grant program. In its second year, the program leverages support from the William R. Kenan Jr. Institute for Engineering, Technology and Science at North Carolina State University with funding from North Carolina Sea Grant.