Free Republic

BOSTON—Scott Segal considers himself an adventurous eater committed to seafood from local sources. But even he got a little squeamish about the Cape Cod Blood Cockle on his plate at Area Four, a Cambridge, Mass., restaurant. A local clam that is typically banished from New England menus because, true to its name, it is filled with blood-red goop, the cockle was coated with a spicy rub and served as part of a "Trash Fish" dinner hosted earlier this year by Boston chefs. The event is one of many ways the local culinary community is promoting cooking with so-called underutilized species...

Sea ice is encroaching unusually early on the central Bering Sea, threatening to grind Alaska's economically important snow crab fishery to a halt at the peak of the season, leaving crabbers facing major losses. Very cold temperatures and strong winds are pushing the ice south at the rate of 10-15 miles a day, according to the National Weather Service. A rate of 2-3 miles a day is normal. The ice itself has a maximum thickness of two feet. Crabbing boats are out retrieving their pots or sitting in Dutch Harbor rather than delivering their catch to the now iced-in Trident...

In mid-August, the National Marine Fisheries Service closed down the red snapper fishery, then a couple of weeks ago they took away the greater amberjack with a week left in the Fishing Rodeo - Destin's longest running fishing tournament. I'm out here criticizing the 'do-gooder,' ” who thinks they are helping the fishery with the closures, Brunson said. “I call 'em educated idiots. They ought to listen to someone who's been fishing for more than 80 years.” “The amberjack is what tore me up,” said the 96-year-old Capt. Reddin “Salty” Brunson, who was sporting a protest sign attached to his...

Environmentalists called Monday for a radical overhaul of fishing practices to prevent a worldwide collapse in tuna stocks as international conservation bodies opened their first joint meeting on the species. The five-day meeting in the western Japanese city of Kobe will look at ways to share information among regions to monitor tuna numbers and control illegal fishing vessels, officials said. Environmentalists called on participants to come up with substantive measures to protect the fish, which are highly prized in Japan. Greenpeace said it was "high time" for governments to recognize the seriousness of the tuna issue. Governments "must acknowledge that...

Federal regulators have voted to impose severe restrictions on salmon fishing off the coasts of Oregon and Northern California to protect dwindling populations in the Klamath River. The Pacific Fishery Management Council decided to close about 700 miles of coastline to commercial salmon fishing for most of June and July. Those are generally the most productive months of the season.