\nGlenn Parsons shows off his bycatch reduction device (top), which helps unwanted fish escape from shrimp trawls (bottom).\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
OXFORD, Miss. Faced with cheap foreign imports and rising
\nfuel costs, commercial shrimpers working in the Gulf of
\nMexico are facing some hard times.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n\n\u00a0\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\nThe waters from Alabama to Louisiana account for nearly
\nhalf of all U.S. shrimp production, and a University of
\nMississippi marine scientist hopes to enable shrimpers to
\nbe more productive, as well as environmentally friendly, by
\nreducing bycatch.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\n“When targeting a certain species, there’s always other
\nspecies that get caught in the nets, which is bycatch,”
\nsaid Glenn Parsons, UM professor of biology. “Not only do
\nfishers have to spend more time sorting their catch, they
\nalso end up with dead and dying species.”
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\nBycatch from shrimpers in the Gulf of Mexico is among the
\nhighest in the United States. “For every pound of shrimp,
\nthere are about 5 pounds of bycatch,” Parsons said.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\nParsons interest in biological oceanography began when he
\nwatched the late ocean explorer Jacques-Yves Cousteau’s
\ntelevision programs as a child. Family vacations to the
\nGulf of Mexico further instilled his passion: “I’ve always
\nloved the ocean,” he said. “I love fishing.”
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\nReinforcing his enthusiasm, Parsons has worked over the
\npast five years to develop a device that releases
\nnontargeted species, such as juvenile red snapper, from
\nshrimping trawls. Fifteen designs later, his bycatch
\nreduction device, which Parsons calls a nested cylinder,
\nhas proven successful in reducing the amount of red snapper
\nbycatch.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\n“At a time when the shrimp industry is enduring tough
\neconomic challenges, cheap imported shrimp, high fuel costs
\nand pressing environmental issues, it is gratifying to know
\nthat there are people like Dr. Parsons, with his extensive
\nknowledge and experience, willing to spend the time
\nimproving both my industry and the overall health of the
\nGulf of Mexico,” said Steve Bosarge, owner of Bosarge Boats
\n& Dockside Seafood in Pascagoula.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\nA third-generation commercial fisherman, Bosarge said
\nParsons’ bycatch reduction device shows real potential.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\n“The benefits of reducing overall bycatch are less time
\nspent sorting the catch and more efficiently performing
\ntrawls,” he said. “That, in turn, reduces fuel consumption
\nand that equates to an economic benefit to shrimp
\nfishermen.”
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\nParsons innovative device takes advantage of natural fish
\ninstincts. Made of two sleeves a smaller cylinder nested
\ninside a larger outer cylinder the device is attached
\ninside a trawl. The openings of the cylinder generate a
\ncontinuous escape route around the circumference of the
\nnet, allowing nontargeted fish species to escape.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\nAccording to field results, the device is a success, with
\n40 percent to 60 percent reductions in bycatch. “This is
\ngood news for fishermen and conservationists,” Parsons
\nsaid.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\nParsons work has been recognized by the World Wildlife
\nFund. More than 70 fishing-related designs from around the
\nworld were submitted in the WWF’s 2007 International Smart
\nGear Competition, and Parsons was named a runner-up. The
\naccolade included a $10,000 award.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\n“It’s a great honor,” he said. “I never win anything, and
\nit’s gratifying when people recognize your work.”
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\nParsons also has examined the effects of illumination and
\nwater flow on red snapper behavior, using a different
\nbycatch device under a $100,000 grant awarded to UM by the
\nNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National
\nMarine Fisheries Service in Pascagoula.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\nShrimp trawling is done at night, and illuminating the
\ntrawl with light sticks seems to help fish find their way
\nout of the trawl, Parsons said. “I expect that light sticks
\nplaced in any bycatch reduction device will improve the
\nperformance of that device, at least in regards to red
\nsnapper bycatch reduction.”
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\nFlow interruption plates on the nested cylinder device that
\nParsons designed also appear to help reduce bycatch,
\nParsons said. The plates help create dead water, which the
\nfish gravitate toward, leading them out of the trawls. “The
\nsnapper don’t have to fight a strong current to escape,” he
\nexplained.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\nProject collaborator Dan Foster, a research fisheries
\nbiologist with NOAA Fisheries, described Parsons as an
\n“expert” in the study of fish swimming ability.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\n“This is very important research,” Foster said. “The nested
\ncylinder appears to be a viable method for bycatch
\ncontrol.”
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\nSince 1998, NOAA Fisheries regulations have required Gulf
\nof Mexico shrimpers to reduce juvenile red snapper bycatch
\nby 44 percent. Despite the intentions, Foster said the
\navailable devices certified by NOAA Fisheries have yet to
\nmeet standards.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\n“Proposed changes to the certification criteria would
\nrequire bycatch reduction devices to reduce finfish bycatch
\nby 30 percent starting in 2008,” Foster said. “This new
\nproposal could allow for new bycatch devices to be approved
\nby NOAA, including Dr. Parsons’ nested cylinder design.”
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\nWith assistance from the WWF, Parsons is refining his
\ndesign, which he believes is the most important work of his
\ncareer. With a patent pending, he hopes to continue testing
\nthe device with Gulf Coast shrimpers this summer under the
\nNational Marine Fisheries Service’s free certification
\nprogram.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\n“I hope that I will soon have the device ready for the
\ncertification process,” Parsons said.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\nHe already has gotten calls from fishermen as far away as
\nAlaska who want to purchase the device.
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\n“The last thing I want to do is burden a poor, hardworking
\nfisherman with something else that makes them lose money,”
\nParsons said. “I want this device to help, not hurt them,
\nand I’m optimistic that it will have a significant and
\npositive impact on both them and the environment.”
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\nFor more information about the device, contact Parsons at
\nbygrp@olemiss.edu. For more information on biology programs
\nat UM, go to
\n<\/span>\n<\/p>\n\n
\nhttp:\/\/www.olemiss.edu\/depts\/biology\/<\/a>.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u00a0 Glenn Parsons shows off his bycatch reduction device (top), which helps unwanted fish escape from shrimp trawls (bottom). OXFORD, Miss. Faced with cheap foreign imports and rising fuel costs, commercial shrimpers working in the Gulf of Mexico are facing some hard times. \u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[222],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n
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<\/p>\n