Mote Magazine, winter annual issue, 2017-2018

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TACKLING OCEAN TRASH TOUGHING OUT HURRICANE IRMA FISHERIES DATA CAUGHT ON CAMERA

Thousands of members, one amazing mission The entire Mote family sincerely thanks our members for their continued investment, dedication and support. More than 9,500 Mote Members invest annually in the Lab’s mission of essential scientific research and educational outreach. Our members are a diverse group from 46 U.S. states and abroad, but one thing unites them: They are friends of the sea. These environmentally conscientious individuals believe is it vital to ensure the health of our oceans and the wildlife and people they support.

Mote Members: Thank you for making waves for marine science, and we hope to see you at our upcoming membership events!

MO TE . ORG/MEM BER SHIP

Stay Connected: #MoteMarineLab

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MOTE 2015 EVENTS CALENDAR

Mote Magazine (ISSN 1553-1104) is published by Mote Marine Laboratory, a world-class nonprofit organization devoted to the ocean and its future.

Through marine science stories, Mote hopes to enhance ocean literacy among the public and encourage conservation and sustainable use of marine resources.

PRESIDENT & CEO

Michael P. Crosby, Ph.D. ASSISTANT VP, COMMUNITY RELATIONS & COMMUNICATIONS

Stacy Alexander EDITOR

Hayley Rutger GRAPHIC DESIGNER

Alexis Balinski CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Amanda Chandler, Dr. Phil Gravinese, Dr. Robert Hueter, Shelby Isaacson, Hayley Rutger and Dr. David Shiffman CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS

Joe Berg/Way Down Video, Conor Goulding, Dr. Philip Gravinese, Tom Landers, Dan Mele, NOAA, Jamen Percy/Shutterstock, Haley Preininger, Olivia Raney, Sarasota Dolphin Research Program/CZS, Dr. David Vaughan, wavebreak3/Adobe Stock

Mote Magazine is proud to recognize Sarasota Magazine as its publishing partner.

For information on sponsorship, please contact Sarasota Magazine at 941-487-1109.

ANNUAL 2017-2018 • VOLUME 76 INFO: 941-388-4441 • M O T E . O R G

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ELECTRONIC MONITORING Commercial fishers and scientists test new monitoring technology.

Issues & impacts Shark fin ban in U.S.

25 Professional development at Mote 26 Mote milestones 28 Legacy Society spotlight

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Hurricane Irma Storm stories from Mote staff

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Sea debris

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Aquaculture advances

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Red tide

29 Special events 30 Oceanic Evening 32 Protect Our Reefs

Surprising science & trash-free tips

Meet the almaco jack

COVER PHOTO Research and response depend on steady support

A juvenile tripletail fish rests underneath floating debris along a sargassum weedline off Marathon, Florida. Photo by Conor Goulding.

MOTE MAGAZINE | ANNUAL 2017-2018

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BOARD OF TRUSTEES Robert Essner CHAIRMAN James D. Ericson VICE CHAIRMAN Lt. Gen. Howard G. Crowell (USA Ret.) TREASURER Nigel Mould SECRETARY Michael P. Crosby, Ph.D. PRESIDENT & CEO Arthur L. Armitage, Chairman Emeritus Eugene Beckstein, Chairman Emeritus Mickey Callanen Robert E. Carter, Chairman Emeritus Ronald D. Ciaravella Scott Collins Maurice Cunniffe John Dart Frederick M. Derr, P.E., Chairman Emeritus Richard O. Donegan Rogan Donelly Dean H. Eisner Susan C. Gilmore Judy Graham, Chairman Emeritus Penelope Kingman Trudo Letschert Kirk Malcolm Elizabeth Moore G. Lowe Morrison, Immediate Past Chairman Rande Ridenour Alan Rose Howard Seider, Jr., M.D. Charles Smith Jeanie Stevenson Sandra Stuart HONORARY TRUSTEES Pauline Becker Howard C. Cobin Sylvia Earle, Ph.D.

Letter From The President Dr. Michael P. Crosby This year, our diverse research programs made positive impacts that will benefit the world around us for decades to come. These scientific successes address the urgent issues our oceans face today and set the stage for decades of discovery that will improve the prognosis for long-term health and sustainability of our marine environments.

This year we opened our new Elizabeth Moore International Center for Coral Reef Research & Restoration (IC2R3) at our Summerland Key campus, where this Category-5 hurricane resistant facility was soon put to the test by Hurricane Irma. IC2R3 stood strong, protecting our coral gene bank and ensuring that our plan to restore 25,000 corals over the coming year will move forward. Our sharkand fisheries-focused programs made bold advances, from testing new fisheries monitoring technology and investigating probiotics for aquaculture species to informing national-level discussions of the shark fin trade. Every program here, whether they focus on specific marine animals, whole ecosystems or molecular- and cellular-level research, should be exceedingly proud of their work this year.

Our education, public outreach and public policy programs worked harder than ever to translate this critical research, helping millions of people of all ages become more ocean literate and empowered as environmental stewards.

These accomplishments are only possible through the incredible philanthropic investment of our donors, the support of our outstanding Board of Trustees, and the substantial efforts of our staff and more than 1,700 volunteers.

In the near future, we will work toward a rebirth of Mote Aquarium at a new location.

This will vastly enhance the scope of and access to our informal science education and outreach programs, while allowing us to significantly expand the research infrastructure on our City Island campus — helping this site to serve as the catalyst for development of a “Silicon Valley” of marine science and technology in southwest Florida.

The oceans connect us all, and we can only benefit them with your help. We hope that you — our supporters, members and friends — will continue to be part of the Mote family today and well into our exciting future.

William S. Galvano, Esq. Peter Hull (Mote Scientific Foundation) The Hon. Andy Ireland Edward H. Jennings Elaine M. Keating

Michael P. Crosby, Ph.D., FLS

J. Robert Long

President & CEO

Kumar Mahadevan, Ph.D. (Mote Scientific Foundation) Jean Martin The Hon. Dan Miller Ronald R. Morris Helen L. Pratt (Mote Scientific Foundation) William Ritchie (Mote Scientific Foundation) Myra Monfort Runyan, Chairman Emeritus Beth G. Waskom

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I S S U E S & I M PA C T S

Sustainably sourced shark fins?

BY HAYLEY RUTGER, excerpting works by Dr. Robert Hueter and Dr. David Shiffman

If shark conservation had a bogeyman, it would be finning: the inhumane, wasteful practice of removing a shark’s fins at sea and tossing the animal back to die.

Photo by: Jamen Percy / Shutterstock

Finning — practiced in some nations to supply demand for shark fin soup — is banned in the United States.

However, in most U.S. states fishers can sell fins removed on shore from legally landed sharks.

This lesser known, lawful side of the fin trade could become illegal nationwide if the U.S. Congress passes a new bill currently in committee: the Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act (H.R. 1456 in the House and S. 793 in the Senate).

The Act states, “no person shall possess, transport, offer for sale, sell, or purchase shark fins or products containing shark fins,” with a few very specific exceptions.

That would be good news for sharks, right?

KEEP READING

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ISSUES & IMPACTS

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rong, say researchers from Simon Fraser University (SFU) and Mote Marine Laboratory, whose new paper in the scientific journal Marine Policy is titled: “A United States shark fin ban would undermine sustainable shark fisheries.”

Paper authors Dr. David Shiffman, a Liber Ero Postdoctoral Research Fellow at SFU, and Dr. Robert Hueter, Senior Scientist and Director of the Center for Shark Research at Mote, performed an independent synthesis of data and discussions from a variety of sources, including those for or against a U.S. fin trade ban.

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A U.S. ban would have an insignificant impact on the global fin market: “…banning the sale of shark fins in the United States would likely not result in a significant direct reduction in global shark mortality, because the United States exports approximately one percent of all the shark fins traded globally, and imports an even smaller percentage of the global fin trade,” states the Marine Policy paper. Fin ban supporters cite the effectiveness of the U.S. ban on ivory for elephant conservation, but the U.S. was a major consumer of ivory, so the precedent does not apply.

U.S. shark fishing is well regulated. Preventing sale of U.S. caught fins opens more market share for less sustainable fisheries that may practice finning. “Of 16 global shark fisheries identified as biologically sustainable and well managed, 9 involve United States shark fishermen, accounting for 76.3% of total landings from these 16 fisheries.”

A U.S. ban would cause waste without reducing shark mortality: “…banning the sale of shark fins would not make it illegal to continue to catch and kill sharks in the United States. It would only regulate how the parts of dead sharks can be used. Forcing fishermen to discard fins from sharks caught in sustainably managed fisheries would contribute to wastefulness in fisheries and undermine the ‘full use’ doctrine that is a component of the UN FAO International Plan of Action for Sharks, without reducing shark mortality.”

Significant loss of income would be borne by lawabiding U.S. fishers: “The proposed fin ban would … eliminate about 23% of the ex-vessel value of legally caught sharks, causing economic harm to rule-following fishermen and undermining decades of progress towards sustainable shark fisheries management in the United States.”

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Instead of a ban, management for sustainability sets a better example for other nations: “A ban on the trade of shark parts from a sustainable fishery would not only eliminate a model of successful management from the global marketplace, but would also remove an important incentive for other nations to adopt that model. A nationwide ban on buying or selling fins would tell international trading partners that the United States will not support their shark conservation efforts regardless of future improvements to their fisheries sustainability.”

These findings may surprise shark supporters, given that many conservation and environmental activist groups have lauded the proposed fin ban.

“We agree completely with the goal of protecting endangered sharks and rebuilding depleted shark populations, but based on the evidence, the Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act will be ineffective for doing so, and could even hurt the cause of shark conservation,” Hueter said.

Instead, Hueter — who has more than 40 years’ experience in shark science and conservation — offers the following five-point approach:

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Increase the penalties for shark finning in the U.S., which the Florida state legislature recently enacted.

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Stop the import of shark products from countries that do not practice sustainable shark fishing, especially those that still permit finning. Some authority to do this already exists, and at press time, efforts were under way to legislate further authority on Capitol Hill.

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Incentivize domestic industry to process American-harvested fins within the U.S., rather than ship them to Hong Kong for processing (as happens now), thereby improving traceability of legal fins and supplying the demand of Asian cultures in the U.S. with products “made in America.”

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Continue to monitor U.S. shark populations, conduct scientific stock assessments and support strict measures for sustainability.

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Educate the public about the real problems sharks face and empower people to do the right things to support shark conservation.

SHARK FINNING

“In nations such as the United States, sustainable shark fisheries are not only possible and largely currently in place, but are preferred as a strategy by 90% of 102 surveyed members of scientific research societies focusing on sharks and rays when compared with a total ban on the sale of shark products,” notes Shiffman, citing a survey he conducted while at the University of Miami (UM), with UM co-author Dr. Neil Hammerschlag.

To promote sustainability, Shiffman and Hueter both suggest focusing more management attention on the overall shark meat trade, which is worth $550 million worldwide and has been growing, compared with the fin trade alone, which is worth $330 million worldwide and has been declining.

In the meantime, Hueter says, “Everyone can do something now to help sharks.”

Understand that in the U.S., shark fisheries are managed for sustainability, and many shark populations are now increasing.

Ask probing questions of groups advocating shark conservation initiatives.

Make sustainable seafood choices using resources such as Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch guide.

Do your research before shark fishing, to avoid illegal harvest or improper handling. If we take steps informed by science, we’ll be more effective in helping sharks.

Photo by: Olivia Raney

Below: Dr. Robert Hueter (right), Director of the Center for Shark Research and Mote Senior Scientist, leads the Sharks & Rays Conservation Research Program at Mote. Pictured here with Mote Senior Biologist Jack Morris.

Learn about shark conservation from science-based sources and share those sources with friends, colleagues and decision makers, including your U.S. congressional delegates.

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IRMA WAS TOUGH;

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HURRICANE IRMA

Far left: Damage to Mote’s campus on Summerland Key, Florida.

Left: Mote’s new Elizabeth Moore International Center for Coral Reef Research & Restoration (IC2R3) stands undamaged next to destroyed outdoor research infrastructure.

Support Mote’s recovery Photo courtesy of NOAA

Visit mote.org/hurricaneirma to donate to Mote’s Hurricane Irma Relief fund, which will support Keys infrastructure repair costs that exceed Mote’s insurance coverage.

THE MOTE FAMILY WAS TOUGHER

BY SHELBY ISAACSON

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n Sept. 10, 2017, the Category 4 Hurricane Irma moved directly over Mote Marine Laboratory’s Elizabeth Moore International Center for Coral Reef Research & Restoration (IC2R3) on Summerland Key, Florida.

Like hundreds of thousands of others in the southeastern U.S., Mote staff held their breaths and waited out the storm in various evacuation locations. Here are a few of their stories, in their own words:

Dr. David Vaughan Executive Director of Mote’s Elizabeth Moore International Center for Coral Reef Research & Restoration (IC2R3) The days leading up to Hurricane Irma are a bit of a blur because we went straight into preparation mode when we heard it would likely hit the Florida Keys. We also wanted to make sure that our staff would be able to leave when evacuations were requested by Monroe County’s Emergency Management.

By the time that request happened our staff had moved close to 30,000 coral fragments or “seeds” into our new building, which was completed in May and built to withstand Category-5 hurricanes. We also placed some corals seeds into an empty shark tank, as I knew it would likely not move.

During the storm, Frank Slifka from our maintenance team and I chose to stay at IC2R3 to ensure that all the backup generators and other coral life-supporting equipment worked. Thankfully everything did its job, including the new building. The external

raceways were devastated due to wind and storm surge, which is unfortunate, as the corals need to be outside in the sun to so that the algae in their tissues can photosynthesize and produce nourishment.

As soon as the storm was over, Fred and I went to work in assessing damage and discovered that many of the coral fragments in the shark tank had flipped over. It took us close to eight hours of diving in the tank to reposition them all.

Now, our main focus, with the help of the Mote facilities team, is getting our outdoor raceways back up and running. It will take some time, but I know that, just like the resilient coral we outplant into local waters, we too as a community will come back stronger than before thanks to our great staff and supporters.

READ MORE 

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HURRICANE IRMA

Dr. Emily Hall Staff Scientist and Ocean Acidification Program Manager The week prior to Irma, a team of approximately 10 interns and I were heading to IC2R3 to break down an experiment Dr. Erinn Muller and I had been working on for several months. It was a multi-faceted experiment where we were studying ocean acidification, climate change and disease effects on staghorn coral. The day we got there, we were pulled into a staff meeting with Dr. Vaughan, who informed us that in two days there would be a mandatory evacuation of the Keys. That meant that we had a very short amount of time to assist in preparing the campus for a potential direct hit and decide what we were going to do with 860 corals that we had intended to do analyses on. We knew they couldn’t stay in the outside raceways.

After conferring with Dr. Muller, we decided to bring these corals to our City Island campus in Sarasota. It took the entire team of more than 10 interns and me the two days – around the clock, mind you – to do the analyses and prepare the corals for transport.

This meant lots of coffee, sugary snacks and great music. The trip back took more than 10 hours when it normally takes 6.5. Monroe County law enforcement officials did a great job keeping traffic

flowing; there were just a lot of people on the road. We also saw massive lines for fuel long before the shortages hit the mainland.

Thankfully, since Dr. Muller wasn’t in the Keys yet, she was able to prepare the Sarasota labs for our arrival. When we arrived around midnight, we had to unpack and continue our experiment.

Weeks later, we were still working to complete the experiment. It hasn’t been the easiest, as we do not have the same equipment or necessary staff on City Island as we do at IC2R3, but it has been a great learning experience for the interns involved. They put a lot of passion and energy into this project, especially during those few days surrounding Irma. I think they learned a lot about research and what it means to be a scientist, from applying what they’ve studied at school to discovering that research is not a 9-5 job – it’s 24 hours, seven days a week sometimes. Above all, teamwork was the greatest lesson. They all had great attitudes and were willing to get the job done together. Collaboration with other researchers, staff and the community is a big part of a successful scientific career.

Erich Bartels Staff Scientist and Coral Reef Monitoring & Assessment Program Manager Irma was predicted to be the strongest hurricane to hit the Florida Keys since the 1960s, and unfortunately she did not disappoint. I spend the majority of my time out in the field working in Mote’s underwater coral nurseries, where we grow thousands of staghorn colonies on coral “trees” made from PVC and fiberglass that are suspended off the seafloor. The methods we use have been designed to hold them securely in place with special anchors driven down into the sand and heavy-duty monofilament and rope, since we don’t want them to move during “typical” storms that come our way. When the forecast looked certain that the storm would make landfall in the Florida Keys, I knew that we couldn’t do much more than what we already had to prepare the coral trees for Irma. So, we focused our energy on securing everything we could at IC2R3, lashing down whatever might float or be blown away, and giving the land-based nursery crew as much help as we could while they prepared the corals to ride out the storm inside the building.

Post-Irma, it took nearly two weeks for us to be able to get out to the offshore coral nurseries near Looe Key and Sand Key

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to assess the damage. Much like the impacts people saw on the news regarding the debris all over the roads throughout the Keys, simply getting access to a boat ramp was nearly impossible, and once on the water the channels were filled with large tangles of rope and trap debris, making boat travel extremely difficult. When we finally did make it offshore, the water was still stirred up, even two weeks after the storm, with visibility near the bottom of only a few feet. Despite the poor conditions, we were finally able to get back in the water, and what we found was that our nursery near Looe Key, which took a direct hit from Irma as it made landfall in the Lower Keys, was hit much harder that our nursery off Key West, some 30 miles away. The impacts we saw on the natural reefs also showed the same trend, with reefs off the Lower Keys much more severely impacted than those west of where the eye passed. Despite the losses we saw, it’s this type of impact on corals that reminds me just how important reefs are for providing a critical storm buffer that protects our coastlines from powerful waves. We can only begin to imagine how much more severely Irma would have damaged the Keys, without our coral reef “shield.”

HURRICANE IRMA

Dr. Kevan Main Senior Scientist and Marine & Freshwater Aquaculture Research Program Manager Much like the rest of Mote and the community, Mote Aquaculture Research Park staff and I were watching Irma closely, beginning the Monday prior. Knowing that she could possibly be coming toward our campus in eastern Sarasota County, we began preparing immediately, as we wanted to make sure all equipment was secured indoors and that our fish stocks would be safe. As a team, we worked together to secure boats and any outdoor piping for our filtration systems. Thankfully, we didn’t have an experiment going on at that time using the large outdoor oil filtration system.

In regards to our indoor fish research facilities, we tested the generators we have on site and rented a few extras for the areas that don’t have permanent generator support. We also brought in extra liquid oxygen for the animals. Our biggest concern was extended loss of power.

During the storm, two staff members volunteered to stay at the campus and to be the first to respond, post storm. I feel very fortunate to work with such caring, compassionate and dedicated staff. We really came together and prepared for the worst and ended up being well prepared for what actually happened. Our most significant damage was to two of our greenhouses where plants are grown in the same systems as fish for marine aquaponics. We have since been able to repair them, thanks to our facilities and scientific staff and our research partners. In addition, we lost several trees around the property; this was unfortunate, especially one of the large old oaks along our driveway. For me I think the most difficult issue now is that we lost two weeks of production and research time, but I am thankful that we were all safe and that our loss was minimal.

Evan Barniskis Assistant Vice President of Mote Aquarium As a local educational attraction, we worked to stay open as long as possible to allow visitors an escape from the stress of Irma.

During that same time our staff was diligent in preparing for the worst. We tested generators, made sure we had extra supplies and food for the animals and made arrangements to evacuate them if necessary. There were definitely times that we were concerned, especially when forecasts were changing and storm surge estimates varied, but we knew we made the right decisions and that our exceptional staff had worked together to prepare the animals and our facility. We even had a few staff dedicated to ride out the storm at the Aquarium to ensure everything was working

correctly and all of our animals were safe. I am very grateful for each and every person that helped out. This experience demonstrated how supportive and caring our Mote family really is.

After the storm had passed, we cleaned up the property and prepared the Aquarium to open back up to visitors. We realized that many schools would remain closed and many local families were without power and probably looking for somewhere cool to go. We decided to lower our admission price for several days to make the Aquarium more accessible for all those folks that needed a place to relax and de-stress.

Don Hermey

Ashley Hill

Environmental Health & Safety Officer II

Boca Grande Outreach Office Assistant

Irma did what she could to make sure we stayed on our toes, from last minute direction changes to the increasing and decreasing of wind gusts. As the Environmental Health & Safety Officer, it is my job to ensure that the visitors and staff of Mote Laboratory & Aquarium are safe. I was in close communication with local and national officials through out the entire process.

Mote has a severe weather preparation plan in place for a reason, and the entire staff, including some volunteers, worked together to follow and exceed what the plan had outlined.

The Boca Grande Outreach office was closed to the public from Aug. 10 to Oct. 10 for its normal summer break, but we had volunteers coming in to help with maintaining our two tanks and caring for our fish daily. The office did not sustain any damage during Irma, but we were without power for six days, so we watched our mangrove and reef tanks closely to ensure our fish residents experienced minimal stress.

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‘SEA DEBRIS’ TURNING TRAGIC TO TEACHABLE

BY HAYLEY RUTGER An endangered Kemp’s ridley sea turtle nicknamed “Anakin” arrived at Mote Marine Laboratory’s animal hospitals with pink line hanging from its mouth in July 2009. X-rays revealed the turtle had swallowed a balloon.

Mote’s Sea Turtle Rehabilitation Hospital team removed the balloon, nursed Anakin back to health and returned the turtle to sea in March 2010.

Anakin’s brush with marine debris ended happily, but many cases don’t.

One of the oldest dolphins in Sarasota Bay — “Squiggy” — died in 2014 with three large fishing hooks in her stomach and one in her mouth attached to 11 feet of heavy monofilament line, along with healed scars from previous entanglements. According to the Sarasota Dolphin Research Program — a Chicago Zoological Society (CZS) program in collaboration with Mote that has monitored Squiggy since 1980 — Squiggy’s daughter died in 2012 from ingesting recreational fishing gear, and the daughter’s sixmonth-old calf died several weeks later from losing her mom.

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Much debris in the ocean comes from consumer plastic products, which sometimes break down into tiny pieces that never fully degrade, allowing animals to mistake them for food. During 2015, Mote Senior Aquarium Biologist Holly West and colleagues examined 142 hatchling (baby) sea turtles that swam out to sea in southwest Florida, then washed back ashore and did not survive.

Of those, 72 percent had ingested human-made marine debris, such as plastic. That’s not so unusual: Birds, fish, shellfish — and the marine environment overall — are all at risk from marine debris.

Now, scientists are gathering and sharing marine debris data in new detail, turning tragic impacts to teachable moments to help communities effect positive change. With that goal at heart, Mote is preparing for the Dec. 9 opening of the limited-time exhibit: “Sea Debris: Awareness through Art” featuring “Washed Ashore.”

“Since 1990, I have been on the water conducting research on Florida wildlife, and unfortunately, throughout this time I have seen increasing amounts of trash in the water and on surrounding shorelines, and I’ve participated in several rescue efforts to disentangle marine animals,” said Kim Bassos-Hull, Senior Biologist with Mote and CZS’ Sarasota Dolphin Research Program. “Research here and elsewhere is showing that marine debris is an increasing

SEA DEBRIS

problem for Florida. Our new exhibit, ‘Sea Debris’ is important in our outreach campaign to highlight to locals and visitors alike how they can be part of the solution to reduce trash in our oceans.”

See debris in a new light “Sea Debris: Awareness through Art” will run from Dec. 9, 2017, through June 15, 2018, at Mote Aquarium in Sarasota, Florida.

Visitors can see larger-than-life, marine-inspired sculptures — such as Greta the Great White Shark, Natasha the Sea Turtle and a massive whale rib cage — made entirely of plastic and other debris gathered from the Oregon coastline by “Washed Ashore,” a non-profit community art project founded by artist and educator Angela Haseltine Pozzi in 2010.

These sculptures highlight a global challenge that Florida residents and visitors can help surmount.

recycling bins out of recycled tennis ball cans, helping anglers and boaters safely store their used fishing line until they can later dispose of it in a bin provided by the Monofilament Recovery and Recycling Program.

Those who don’t fish have probably sipped from a straw, plastic bottle or metal can, carried single-use plastic bags or celebrated with balloons. These are among the most common debris items from Florida coastlines surveyed in 2000-2006, in a project by the Ocean Conservancy on behalf of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (Source: Florida Marine Debris Reduction Guidance Plan, 2017).

MOST COMMON DEBRIS ITEMS FOUND ALONG FLORID COASTLINE

Debris by the data Derelict fishing gear — one common type of marine debris — is a growing threat for numerous marine animals around Florida, reported a 2014 peer-reviewed study by scientists from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Center for Coastal Studies, NOAA Fisheries, and Bassos-Hull from CZS’ Sarasota Dolphin Research Program and Mote.

“Our data, which spanned 1997 through 2009, showed increasing trends in the numbers of dolphins, manatees and loggerhead and green sea turtles impacted by this gear, and identified hotspots around the state,” Bassos-Hull said. “Key recommendations from this study include increased marine debris prevention outreach and timely removal of trash and derelict fishing gear.

Elizabeth Winchester, Monofilament Recovery & Recycling Program coordinator for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), expanded on the risks of fishing gear and debris left behind: “Most people think of fishing line ensnaring large animals, but it can also be dangerous for human swimmers and even damage boat propellers. Additionally, on coral reefs a variety of debris can wrap around organisms, sometimes even smothering reefs, blocking the sunlight that the corals need to survive.” To help prevent fishing line impacts, the Monofilament Recovery & Recycling Program encourages placing used monofilament and fluorocarbon line into special recycling bins at salt- and freshwater fishing spots.

To support these efforts, former Mote intern Sean Russell worked with Bassos-Hull at Mote, 4-H members and his family to create the Stow It-Don’t Throw It Project (stowitdontthrowitproject.weebly. com) — a youth-driven effort to keep fishing line and other debris out of the ocean. Youth participants make personal monofilament

1,571 PIECES OF TRASH REMOVED FROM SIESTA KEY BEACH IN AUGUST 2017

BY MOTE STAFF, VOLUNTEERS AND STUDENTS FROM RINGLING COLLEGE OF ART & DESIGN

On Siesta Beach in Sarasota County, Mote ‘s August 2017 cleanup with students from Ringling College of Art & Design removed 1,571 pieces of trash — particularly plastic food wrappers, cigarettes, and plastic or foam fragments — in just a couple of hours. Such items of consumer debris are found with increasing frequency in the stomachs of sea turtles, seabirds and other marine animals (FMDRGP, 2017).

Floating, non-biodegradable pieces of consumer debris may even carry some marine organisms across great distances, increasing the chances of invasion by non-native species.

Some types of debris have obvious impacts, while others are subtler and require much more research, says Gretchen Lovewell, Manager of the Stranding Investigations Program at Mote: “When we examine a sea turtle or a dolphin, the most common types of debris we find are fishing gear, entangled around the animal or inside its digestive tract — it’s visible to the naked eye and can be deadly,” Lovewell said. “However, emerging information on very small debris, such as microplastics less than 5 millimeters long, has alerted us to a whole different story. Microplastics may pass through some animals’ systems without causing a blockage, but we

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SEA DEBRIS

‘Sea Debris’ related events don’t know how prevalent they are in our dolphins and sea turtles, and we don’t know what effects they might be having. Investigating that is an important next step for us.”

The Sarasota Dolphin Research Program is currently engaged in new research on microplastics in dolphins, in collaboration with the College of Charleston and others. Initial findings have detected chemicals associated with such plastics in dolphin urine, but the effects remain to be defined.

The scope of Florida’s marine debris challenges, and recommendations to address them, are presented in the Florida Marine Debris Reduction Guidance Plan (FMDRGP), released in January 2017. The development of this document is the result of a four-year collaborative partnership between numerous federal, state and private-sector partners. Bassos-Hull of Mote/CZS co-led the Wildlife and Habitat Impacts working group together with Dr. Jennifer L. McGee, Statewide Coordinator for the Florida Beaches Habitat Conservation Plan and Marine Debris Team Lead at FWC. Lovewell at Mote, and Dr. Katie McHugh, CZS staff scientist with the Sarasota Dolphin Research Program, also served as members of this work group and contributors to the FMDRGP. The FMDRGP provides science-based objectives, recommendations and strategies to help government and private organizations work together effectively to: reduce consumer debris, derelict fishing gear, and abandoned and derelict vessels; increase capacity to respond to emergency debris; and reduce impacts on wildlife and habitats.

McGee of FWC hopes that, by collecting more detailed and consistent data as to the impacts of marine debris on Florida’s wildlife and habitats, identifying statewide trends, creating models for Florida, and generating peer reviewed findings, we can reduce the “out of sight, out of mind” attitude toward marine debris and better manage and mitigate its impacts on Florida’s resources.

“We are pulling together the existing data — from FWC, the Department of Environmental Protection, NOAA, Mote and others — and we are starting to see some trends,” McGee said. “We are also identifying data gaps and developing standardized protocols for reporting wildlife and habitat impacts with the goal of turning that information around to make recommendations and initiate big changes in reducing both the amount of marine debris and its negative impacts. Those changes could be regulatory or through education and outreach. Going forward, we need to make sure that marine debris information is reported on for all species groups and habitats — including the ones we don’t see as often, like shellfish, seagrass beds and spoil island rookeries.

The partners who worked on the Florida Marine Debris Reduction Guidance Plan are going to keep working to move its objectives forward, and keep this momentum going.”

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Check www.mote.org/events or see other links specified below for event details and registration. Registration is required for all events unless otherwise stated.

2017 Dec. 9: New exhibit “Sea Debris: Awareness through Art” featuring “Washed Ashore” opens to the public. See it from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. daily at Mote Aquarium, Sarasota. Included with normal Aquarium admission. mote.org/seadebris

2018 Jan. 25: Youth Making Ripples Film Festival and Competition. Middle- to high-school film competition finalists debut their works focusing on marine debris and plastic pollution.

Feb. 10: Teens clean up the island. 8:30-11 a.m., City Island, Sarasota. All teens (age 14-18 ONLY) are invited to work with Mote’s high school interns to rid City Island of marine debris. Bring a water bottle and get ready to meet new friends! Students can earn community service hours.

Feb. 26: Mote’s Special Lecture Series kicks off with “The good, the bad, and the smelly: An overview of Mote’s Stranding Investigations Program,” by Gretchen Lovewell, whose team rescues and recovers ocean animals, including those affected by marine debris. 6:30 p.m. in the WAVE Center at Mote, Sarasota. All lecture details and tickets: mote.org/lecture March 20: “A Plastic Ocean” documentary screening. 5:30 p.m. in the WAVE Center at Mote Aquarium, Sarasota. Sponsored by PNC Wealth Management.

April 16: Science Café on Sea Debris. Discussion with experts from Mote and Keep Sarasota County Beautiful. Calusa Brewing, 5701 Derek Ave., Sarasota.

April 23: SeaTrek.TV Special Live Event spotlighting marine debris. Check for details at: SeaTrek.tv/live June 2: World Oceans Day Celebration. 10 a.m.-1 p.m. at Mote Aquarium, Sarasota. Games, crafts and educational tables focused on green practices, marine science and conservation by Mote and other local organizations. Included with normal Mote Aquarium admission. mote.org/worldoceansday June 15: Last day of “Sea Debris” exhibit.

SEA DEBRIS

THE GOOD NEWS: SCIENCE + YOU = IMPACT EACH OF US CAN HELP TACKLE MARINE DEBRIS THROUGH SIMPLE STEPS IN OUR DAILY LIVES:

EVERYONE: Choose re-usable water bottles and bags.

Skip the straw or carry a reusable straw.

BEACHGOERS, BOATERS AND FISHERS: Each time you go to the beach, leave it cleaner than before.

Place trash in appropriate receptacles.

Recycle whenever possible within the rules and guidelines in your community.

Share data on the debris you find through the smartphone app Marine Debris Tracker. There, you can log data under a special list for CZS’ Sarasota Dolphin Research Program.

Store or secure loose items around your yard, especially when stormy weather is forecast. This helps prevent objects from blowing or washing into storm drains and waterways.

Stow trash and fishing line when under way.

Marine debris that blows out of a vessel or vehicle can become ingested by, or entangled around, marine life. Check your fishing line for frays and recycle monofilament line before it can break.

Never release balloons into the environment.

Recycle monofilament fishing line in bins at boat ramps, piers, marinas and tackle shops. Carry a portable bin to collect discarded line. Cut discarded braid or wire fishing line into 12-inch or smaller pieces and place them into a covered trash receptacle.

Find coastal cleanup events in your community through the Ocean Conservancy’s International Coastal Cleanup website: oceanconservancy.org/trash-free-seas Reduce microplastics by taking steps suggested by the Florida Microplastic Awareness Project (FMAP): plasticaware.org Learn about marine debris prevention from qualified government programs such as NOAA’s Marine Debris Program, FWC’s Monofilament Recovery and Recycling Program, DEP’s Clean Marina and Clean Boatyard programs, along with independent, informal science education efforts such as Mote’s “Sea Debris” exhibit. mote.org/seadebris

When disposing of tackle such as hooks and lures, clip off sharp points to avoid injuring humans and wildlife.

Report entangled marine animals (and any injured, sick or dead marine animals in general) to trained wildlife responders in your area.

Within Sarasota or Manatee county waters, please call Mote’s Stranding Investigations Program, a 24-hour response program, at (941) 988-0212.

If you see a stranded or dead manatee anywhere in state waters or a stranded or dead dolphin, whale or sea turtle outside of Sarasota or Manatee counties, please call the FWC Wildlife Alert hotline at: 1-888-404-FWCC (3922).

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Hook, line and video camera NEW TOOLS IN FISHERIES SCIENCE

BY HAYLEY RUTGER On a commercial fishing vessel in Madeira Beach, Florida, deckhand Melissa Alford was preparing for a 2013 trip into the Gulf of Mexico — a couple weeks of hard work, hauling in longlines and hoping for a healthy catch of grouper and snapper.

There, she met Mote Marine Laboratory scientists who stopped by the dock to install video monitoring systems on the vessel, under a research partnership with the Gulf of Mexico Reef Fish Shareholders’ Alliance and Wild Seafood. “Some people on commercial vessels would turn down the idea of hosting cameras,” Alford said, “but when I talked with the scientists, and they showed me data sheets with the fish and shark information they wanted our help to collect, and what they wanted to learn, I thought, this is awesome.”

The video cameras were part of an electronic monitoring (EM) system. EM is an emerging method to gather scientific data from commercial vessels to inform and enhance fisheries management with the goal of benefiting the fish stocks, fishers, and ultimately seafood consumers who value sustainability. Mote was testing the system with help from some of the most knowledgeable people on the Gulf — those who fish it.

Alford said: “I love to learn; I want to hear from the scientists and I want them to know what I’m seeing out there. We don’t always have this kind of communication among different groups involved in the fishery, and I think that’s an issue that’s starting to be addressed.”

Photo by: Conor Goulding

EM camera systems help scientists document the fish species caught, numbers kept and discarded, notes about their condition and details on when a vessel sets or hauls fishing gear or travels between fishing grounds and port. On the participating vessels, Mote’s cameras recorded only the fish being hauled aboard and the unwanted bycatch being tossed back — not any other area of the boat or activity. Videos and supporting data were saved to a hard drive that Mote scientists and trained volunteers later removed and analyzed confidentially, protecting the crew’s privacy.

There are many ways to take the pulse of a fishery, but no established method can provide all the answers sought by regulators at state agencies, the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the nation’s Fisheries Management Councils.

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FISHERIES MONITORING

Top Left: One of the video cameras installed on a commerical fishing vessel as part of an electronic monitoring (EM) system. Bottom Left: Mote volunteers Matt Hickey and David Law set up an EM system on a participating vessel. Right: Mote Staff Scientist Carole Neidig works with volunteer Sarah Hayes to analyze video footage and data collected from commercial fishing vessels.

Trained observers placed by NOAA Fisheries collect some of the best data on commercial vessels and collect biological samples at fish-processing sites. However, observers must be paid for their hard work, they can be perceived as intrusive on some fishing operations, and their placement is only feasible for a small fraction of Gulf fishing trips — for instance, 3-5 percent of trips annually in the Gulf’s reef fish fishery. Managers also gain vital information from paper or electronic logbooks filled out by captains, reports from fish houses that buy the catch, independent scientific studies not involving commercial vessels, and more. However, industry members’ reports aren’t all equally detailed, and independent scientific studies have limited coverage.

“Providing the best data, and enough of it, from different fisherydependent sources to managers, will help management work together even better with industry to make solid win-win decisions for this fishery,” said Carole Neidig, the EM project leader and Mote staff scientist who has collaborated with Gulf fishers on years’ worth of research. Today Neidig is working together to advance EM pilot studies with co-principal investigator Dr. Thomas King and their Mote EM Team.

Neidig continued: “Sometimes fishers tell us they don’t agree with a regulatory decision and think it’s not based on enough sound data. EM is one method for obtaining more of that sound data.

A number of commercial fishers asked to participate in our EM study because they wanted to show fisheries management that they were doing their best to be sustainable.”

NOAA reports that EM programs are used in five U.S. fisheries so far, including Alaskan groundfish fleets and open-ocean Atlantic longline fisheries, with cameras monitoring for bluefin tuna bycatch in the latter.

“These fisheries each use EM in different ways,” said Dr. Jessica Stephen, the Limited Access Privilege Programs and Data Management Chief for NOAA Fisheries’ Southeast Regional Office.

“It’s very important to determine what specific questions you’re trying to answer, and whether EM is the right tool to do so.”

How about in the Gulf of Mexico?

“EM is really in its research phase in the Gulf,” Stephen said. “The outcomes of pilot studies, like the ones Mote is doing, could help Fisheries Management Councils decide whether EM would make sense in specific management plans. We would need to know: What questions can EM answer better than other current methods, without imposing unnecessary costs?”

In 2011, the Ocean Conservancy led one of the first EM studies in the Gulf with Mote and other partners, providing early evidence

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FISHERIES MONITORING

that EM could effectively collect data from longline and bandit (vertical line) snapper and grouper vessels.

result in new, innovative management strategies that seek to minimize bycatch through identification of bycatch hotspots.”

Study partners then shifted leadership of Gulf EM projects to Mote, an independent marine laboratory that is now working to establish the first center for electronic monitoring of Gulf commercial fisheries.

Shark bycatch poses one notable challenge to Gulf fisheries. Around the world, resource managers are working to reverse decades of decline in some shark populations, and their efforts include reducing unnecessary bycatch. Longline fishers want that, too.

From 2013-2017, Mote scientists and trained volunteers tested EM video systems on up to eight reef fish longline vessels. Participating fishers were given detailed species identification and project overview booklets and datasheets for documenting their catch and bycatch, for comparison with and improvement of EM results.

The study progressed thanks to a competitive grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) and numerous partnerships, including with the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Foundation, Gulf of Mexico Reef Fish Shareholders’ Alliance, Environmental Defense Fund, Save-On Seafood Company, Fishbusterz, Wild Seafood, Waterinterface LLC., Archipelago Marine Research, and Saltwater Inc. Capt. Jason Delacruz, vice president of the Shareholders Alliance and owner and operator of Wild Seafood, provided some participating vessels. “We want to know if EM will let the highskilled, top-level players in the industry demonstrate that they are doing things right — for instance, I have a guy who knows how to adjust his gear to catch fewer gag grouper, and we are probably discarding fewer gags than regulators know. The regulations should take this kind of information into account.”

Grouper, snapper and other reef fishes are among the most economically valuable but closely regulated species in the Gulf.

According to NOAA, more than 30 species of Gulf-dwelling snappers, groupers and other species are managed under Fishery Management Plans for reef fishes and coastal migratory pelagic fishes — the Gulf groups with the greatest numbers of annual catch limits imposed to prevent overfishing.

“Many of these species co-occur and are caught and discarded as bycatch while fishing for other target species,” said NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service Southeast Region Electronic Monitoring and Reporting Regional Implementation Plan published in 2015. Fishers work to release bycatch alive, but even the best efforts cannot guarantee that all will survive.

NOAA’s plan calls for more bycatch data: “The primary goal for increasing the use of video monitoring in the (U.S.) Southeast Region is to improve documentation and monitoring of catch and bycatch in federally managed fisheries, and interactions with protected species, especially given limited observer coverage in many fisheries. Use of EM could increase reporting rates and

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“We’re seeing a ton more sharks, and they’re a hindrance for us,” said Delacruz of Wild Seafood. “They’re usually alive, and if you have a large coastal shark in your gear, you can spend 35 minutes unraveling it.”

Mote scientists working with Gulf longline vessels successfully obtained an Environmental Defense Fund grant to investigate shark bycatch during 2016-2017.

Neidig and her EM team of scientists and volunteers huddled around computers at Mote’s Sarasota campus to watch, re-watch and capture carefully standardized data sets from thousands of hours of longline EM video footage. They discussed how to structure data for sharing with resource managers and fishers — for instance, plotting fishing locations on a grid with no latitude, longitude or coastlines, for meaningful analysis without revealing valued fishing spots. They switched software programs to meet their data processing needs. They worked with participants to adjust camera angles and camera types on boats and documented challenges with equipment such as lenses obscured by dirt or ocean spray.

They verified their fish IDs through a quality assurance team of experts, including Mote senior scientist Dr. Robert Hueter, who co-led the shark bycatch project, and fisheries scientists not affiliated with the projects.

How did the EM team do?

“We had over 90 percent accuracy in identifying the fish species in the videos we reviewed,” Neidig said. Data showed fishers were targeting red grouper, red snapper, blueline tilefish, yellowedge grouper, gag grouper and scamp. “Of the 25 percent of the total vessel hauls we reviewed, nearly four percent of the catch was shark bycatch, most commonly Atlantic sharpnose sharks.”

Neidig continued, “We were able to find hotspot locations with a high catch per unit effort of groupers, snappers and sharks, and we were able to look at where those hotspots overlapped and what habitats they covered, down to sediment type. Sharks did sometimes overlap with the targeted reef fish, and those results corroborate what the fishers have been telling us and some past observer data have been indicating.”

FISHERIES MONITORING

Will such EM data start feeding into Gulf fisheries management anytime soon?

“Even when we see that a type of technology is useful, it can take quite some time to determine whether and how it should be implemented for management,” Stephen of NOAA said. “A regional Fishery Management Council would look closely at the pros and cons, propose changes if needed and solicit public input.”

Neidig hopes to investigate the linkages between EM, other data sources, and management needs in her next studies, which will involve up to 20 longline and bandit vessels in multiple Gulf locations, supported by a National Fish and Wildlife Foundation grant for 2017-2019, and a NOAA Cooperative Research Program grant for 2017-2018.

Above: Mote Volunteer Bobby Hilbrunner references an ID manual while reviewing EM footage in 2016.

“These data suggest it’s often impossible for reef fish vessels to avoid some interaction with sharks — and that has important implications for management,” said Hueter. “By studying this problem using EM, we can develop strategies to mitigate the shark bycatch. Research can examine alterations to fishing gear and bait types, development of shark deterrents, and ways to shift fishing effort to address how to balance reducing shark bycatch with meeting the needs of fishers and seafood consumers.”

Some fish — including a sizeable proportion of the sharks, particularly those cut off while underwater — could not be identified by species on the EM records. Some of this uncertainty is being addressed by adjusting camera locations and working with the crew to help facilitate better views.

“We got some good ideas from the fishers,” Neidig said. Deckhand Melissa Alford suggested positioning underwater cameras on the haul lines to document “bite offs” — sharks and other bycatch species that are hooked but get away. Captain Chip Younger and his crew have been using a Go-Pro camera to obtain additional footage. Neidig and team are refining and will test underwater cameras in current EM studies.

As for sea turtles, a concerning bycatch species for some fisheries, Neidig pointed out: “In three years of our study, we only saw one sea turtle caught by one of our EM vessels. The crew took great care to follow protocol and make sure that turtle went back to sea quickly.”

Max Lee, a NOAA Fisheries observer who volunteers with Neidig, pondered this next step. “I think that with proof you’re getting accurate data from the EM videos, integrating EM with the other fishery-dependent data should be fairly seamless. We are starting to see that EM can generate some similar data to what an observer can – the one downside is that observers can take physical samples of the catch and EM can’t. Each one does something the other can’t do. I don’t see EM as something that will put observers out of work. I see it as complementing other fishery management tools.”

EM technology is evolving, too, as scientists investigate using image recognition to allow better measurement of fish from the videos, using facial recognition software to help ID fish, and more.

Though EM research in the Gulf is in its infancy, Neidig says its progress is heartening. “With the seafood industry working in partnership with science to integrate EM as a monitoring tool, the fishers are taking steps to provide actionable documentation on their efforts to improve sustainable production of wild seafood.”

Lee suggests that sustainability is the incentive for fishers to get involved now.

“Volunteering to put a camera on their boat shows that these guys are really into sustainability,” Lee said. “It’s easier to sell a fish if you can talk to buyers about it being sustainably caught. It’s along the lines of something the Gulf of Mexico Reef Fish Shareholders’ Alliance does now – they have a program called Gulf Wild where fish are sold with a gill tag with an individual barcode that allows consumers to track who caught it, where, and how they used responsible harvesting practices. People are interested in this information in the way they’re interested in buying sustainably grown organic vegetables. If fishers get on board with this, you can have a lot of success by showing that you care.”

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AQUACULTURE ADVANCES

NEW FISH

at

THE FARM

BY HAYLEY RUTGER

If you’re looking for grilled salmon, tuna sashimi, or tilapia fillets, you’ll find them quickly in many U.S. restaurants. However, restaurant goers will have a tougher time finding the buzz-worthy, sushi-grade fish known as almaco jack — for now, anyway.

Almaco jack (Seriola rivoliana) — a firm-fleshed, versatile seafood fish cultured in places such as Hawaii and Europe — may show up at restaurants in major U.S. cities and along the Pacific coast.

However, the species has never before been farmed in one of its major habitats, the Gulf of Mexico.

Mote Marine Laboratory scientists hope to change that.

“This fish is a perfect candidate for offshore aquaculture growth in the Gulf, because we know it has a strong market and people have cultured it in other places, but never before in the Gulf,” said Dr. Kevan Main, Senior Scientist at Mote and Co-Principal Investigator on a new study of how to farm almaco jack. “Recognizing this exciting opportunity, we have launched a new study to determine the requirements for maturation, spawning and hatchery production of almaco jack.”

Mote scientists hope to provide this essential knowledge to help the aquaculture industry produce healthy, juvenile almaco jack in land-based farms to supply offshore cage farms. This research underscores a new opportunity for Gulf-based aquaculture.

In January 2016, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced the Fishery Management Plan for Regulating Offshore Marine Aquaculture in the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf Aquaculture Plan), which will allow as many as 20 offshore aquaculture operations in Gulf waters to be permitted over 10 years.

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Photos by: Conor Goulding

Top Right: Mote Senior Biologist Tom Waldrop weighs an almaco jack at Mote Aquaculture Research Park in Sarasota, Florida.

Right: Mote Senior Biologist Matt Resley works with an almaco jack fish during a sampling session.

AQUACULTURE ADVANCES

Above: Mote Staff Scientists Drs. Nathan P. Brennan and Nicole Rhody examine samples taken from almaco jack at Mote Aquaculture Research Park.

Almaco jack, also called Kona Kampachi and longfin yellowtail, live in tropical to temperate waters worldwide and are served as sushi or cooked. Almaco jack farmed in recirculating aquaculture systems — designed to clean and recycle water — are listed as a great sustainable seafood choice by Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch guide and offshore-farmed almaco jack are listed as a good alternative.

In August 2017, Mote scientists began collecting samples and data from Gulf of Mexico almaco jack housed in the eco-friendly, recirculating systems at Mote Aquaculture Research Park in eastern Sarasota County, Florida.

Usually, helping a new fish spawn in aquaculture requires tweaking the temperature, lighting and other conditions, sometimes for years.

However, the almaco jack jumped the gun — in a very good way.

“The fish surprised us — they started spawning on their own this month, and they spawned almost every night for more than a week,” Main said. “Something here is working right, so we want to know what conditions triggered the spawn. During spawning, it’s a good time to take gonadal biopsies to identify the males and females. We’re also tagging, weighing and measuring the fish.”

Dr. Nicole Rhody, Mote’s co-principal investigator for the project, bent over her microscope to examine samples collected from the almaco jack on Aug. 23. “We saw that they were spawning — releasing eggs and sperm — but we want to see which individual fish are actually contributing, and which ones aren’t yet. Here I am looking at the oocytes,” Rhody said. Prior to ovulation, eggs are called oocytes. “We’ll examine them in more detail using histology to confirm which fish have recently spawned. We’ll also count the

sperm and look at their motility and morphology to see if the male fish are able to reproduce successfully.”

Overall, Mote’s study of almaco jack will last two years and focus on: understanding the reproductive cycle in an aquaculture system; developing methods to improve survival and growth for research- and commercial-scale trials of rearing larvae (babies) and fingerlings (juveniles); examining seafood market opportunities; and disseminating results to the scientific community and aquaculture industry.

Ultimately, Mote scientists hope their research will yield opportunities to develop the world’s first domesticated stock of almaco jack — based on multiple, successive generations bred and raised in sustainable aquaculture systems. Currently, almaco jack aquaculture operations elsewhere collect wild fish to breed for growing in nearshore or offshore aquaculture cages. The funding has not been available to establish multi-generation breeding and maturation programs for the majority of marine fishes.

Mote scientists are focused on surmounting two key challenges for hatchery production of this species: poor-quality spawns and low survival of young almaco jack in hatcheries, along with parasites and bacterial pathogens that naturally affect these fish in the wild. Mote is leading the spawning and rearing research, while a collaborating scientist from the University of Florida’s Tropical Aquaculture Lab in Ruskin, Florida, will lead the health and disease research.

Funding for this project is provided by NOAA Sea Grant Aquaculture Research Program and administered by the Florida Sea College Program.

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RED TIDE RESEARCH

BY HAYLEY RUTGER

H

armful algal blooms in the Gulf of Mexico come and go.

When present, they can kill fish, close shellfish harvest areas, cause beachgoers to cough and sneeze, deter tourists and even send people with chronic respiratory disorders to the emergency room. Once blooms dissipate, they can also vanish from the minds of residents and visitors enjoying the Gulf’s beautiful beaches and waters.

Unfortunately, funding support for uninterrupted, multi-year-studies — which are essential for scientists to tackle harmful algae impacts effectively — can come and go like blooms.

State and federal research funding awarded to the independent nonprofit Mote Marine Laboratory and its research partners has tended to spike immediately after significant blooms, then decline in subsequent years. The mid-1990s and mid-2000s each brought high impact blooms of the naturally occurring Karenia brevis algae known as Florida red tide; during or just after these blooms, Mote’s

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funding from the State of Florida and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) increased by tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars, only to dip again in subsequent years.

“Gulf of Mexico red tide research accomplishments always depended and still depend on the level of financial support and its duration,” wrote Dr. Karen Steidinger, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) researcher, in the 2009 paper “Historical Perspective on Karenia brevis red tide research in the Gulf of Mexico” in the peer-reviewed journal Harmful Algae.

“If research was funded, advancements were made for that period of funding,” she wrote, citing that support from NOAA, the Environmental Protection Agency and other federal agencies allows for critical, interdisciplinary research to break new ground.

Mote scientists and partners have worked hard to effectively and efficiently squeeze every dollar of funding support for major scientific advancement.

Photo by: Conor Goulding

RED TIDE: HOW TO BE READY

RED TIDE RESEARCH

For example, in 2014, the culmination of a five-year study funded

by NOAA’s ECOHAB program produced 14 collaborative research papers from seven institutions — including Mote, FWC, Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, University of Maryland and others — who together investigated which nutrients feed K. brevis red tide. Study partners documented 12 nutrient sources in southwest Florida waters — including some never before associated with K. brevis — and provided a clearer picture than ever of the multiple natural as well as human-contributed sources of nourishment for these challenging blooms.

Research aims not only to reveal how blooms work, but also to develop prevention, control and mitigation strategies. So far, there is no tried-and-true way to combat some of the most challenging blooms, such as K. brevis red tides, without risk to the Gulf’s sensitive ecosystems, and the logistic and economic constraints of “treating” vast volumes of coastal water remain problematic.

Mote CEO Crosby responded to the news: “Mote was pleased to discuss this critical funding need with Congressman Buchanan as he developed his amendment. If the Senate accepts and President Trump signs this appropriations bill as amended, it will allow the federal government to take its rightful place in support of muchneeded, improved and consistent red tide research and mitigation efforts at state and local levels.”

At press time in October 2017, the U.S. Senate continued to work on its budget legislation, and HAB researchers eagerly awaited news of its next steps, expected by mid-December.

Center of attention: Better HAB response Mote has led innovative research on HABs for decades, working in cooperation with FWC, NOAA the University of South Florida and many others. Today, HABs such as K. brevis red tide in the Gulf of Mexico, brown tides of Aureoumbra lagunensis algae like those in the Indian River Lagoon, and blue-green algae blooms such as those in central Florida’s freshwater systems are the focus of successful and emerging Mote research initiatives.

However, research and scientific monitoring do enable important mitigation efforts already: daily to weekly public updates on K. brevis red tides and their impacts; shellfish harvest closures to prevent neurotoxic shellfish poisoning; and safety guidelines for the public, We, as a research community, including those with chronic respiratory can and should do much more conditions who face greater risks from airborne K. brevis toxins.

“

to advance the mitigation

“We need to enhance the detection and understanding of red tide, but in particular, we need to enhance technologies for response and mitigation,” said Dr. Michael P. Crosby, President & CEO of Mote. “The research community needs consistent funding support targeted to find better answers to the long-standing question, ‘What are you going to do about these blooms?’”

Support on the horizon?

and control of harmful algae impacts. Given consistent, strategic funding support, we have the expertise and the technology to do just that.”

— Dr. Michael P. Crosby, Mote President & CEO

To further benefit Gulf Coast communities and ecosystems, Mote envisions the creation of an independent, Florida-based Red Tide HAB Center that will include a number of partner organizations to utilize innovative approaches and advanced technologies for: rapid identification and assessment of HABs; mitigation of HAB impacts and strategies for control of toxin exposure; protection of public and environmental health, and the local economy; and expansion of local community outreach, education and engagement with citizen science applications.

In summer 2017, through the leadership of Congressman Vern Buchanan and with bipartisan support, the U.S. House of Representatives adopted his budget amendment for an appropriation of $8 million to NOAA’s National Ocean Service to fight impacts of harmful algal blooms (HABs).

Mote CEO Crosby said: “We, as a research community, can and should do much more to advance the mitigation and control of harmful algae impacts. Given consistent, strategic funding support, we have the expertise and the technology to do just that. Our envisioned HAB Center would provide a strong, consistent, multi-institution effort to conduct and translate research into meaningful benefits for our communities.”

“Southwest Florida is a beautiful, vibrant place to live and we need to address any threat to our pristine environment and way of life,” Buchanan said after his proposal was passed. “We need to understand more about the toxins in red tide so we can stop their damaging effects.”

Crosby continued: “This Center would invite citizen scientists to play vital roles, above and beyond the wonderful work we already do together. We currently have qualified volunteers like lifeguards monitoring for respiratory irritation and dead fish for Mote’s Beach Conditions Reporting System. In the future, we want to enable

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RED TIDE RESEARCH someone like a Gulf Coast clam farmer to use inexpensive yet innovative technology to take regular samples of the water and even clam tissue to enhance information for the seafood industry and the public.”

Specifically the Center would aim to: enhance rapid detection, identification and response for HABs, including improved notifications for those who might be affected; gather more data at critical locations, with the help of autonomous sensors and with volunteer citizen scientists; improve our knowledge of the response of red tides to physical, biological, chemical and nutrient controls; provide toxicity predictions based on these responses; produce daily localized forecasts of airborne red tide toxins by coupling weather forecasts and public (citizen science) driven HAB reporting; and to provide effective local-scale treatment options.

The Center would operate an advanced HAB Observation System using next-generation technology to rapidly detect HABs and their toxins in water, air and shellfish. Center scientists would develop and deploy new underwater sensors on fixed and moving platforms to detect HABs and their toxins, rapid field sensors for HAB toxins in shellfish, and flying drones — tools that Mote scientists are beginning to test this year with hyperspectral cameras to help detect blooms from the air.

Smartphone apps already developed by Mote scientists and partners, and new apps envisioned, would be key tools the Center’s citizen-science monitoring.

cells and toxins and examining potential “biocontrol” treatments such as natural macroalgae compounds that are already shown to kill or inhibit the growth of K. brevis algae in the lab. HAB Center scientists would develop new, targeted strategies to minimize the impact of HAB toxins on human and animal health; for example, one goal would be developing antioxidant technology to reduce K. brevis red tide toxin effects on the health of manatees, sea turtles and humans. Center scientists would also develop improved notification tools with expanded geographic coverage and predictions of HAB beach effects for at-risk public. The maturation and rapid communication of fine-scale red tide detection and field tissue testing would allow commercial interests to mitigate adverse economic impacts. Additional knowledge of red tide responses would also enable best management practices to limit or reverse conditions that cause, intensify or prolong red tide.

Lastly, the proposed HAB Center would enhance education and outreach on red tide risks and hazards, engage communities through a citizen science network, and enhance availability of bloom information to continue improving the real-time protection of public health. Building on toxicity predictions developed in research efforts, this would require significantly growing Mote and partners’ existing “outreach toolbox” of smartphone apps, social media platforms, collaborative educational strategies and materials, and other HAB-focused outreach tools.

HAB mitigation and control research would be a mainstay of the envisioned Center. Participating scientists would advance the study of local-scale treatment options for harmful algae – such as using ozone in a controlled area to reduce or eliminate HAB

“We envision this HAB Center as a source of stable, long-term, focused research and outreach to help communities grapple with the impacts of harmful algae, which cost our state millions of dollars. Those who support the research community, by supporting our vision, are helping us determine exactly what we’re going to do about it.”

Take action:

Below: Dr. Richard Pierce and Mauricio Rodrigues, a USF-REU intern, conduct an experiment in the ecotoxicology lab at Mote Marine Laboratory.

To support Mote’s effort to spearhead a Florida-based Red Tide HAB Center, please contact Erin Kabinoff: 941-388-4441, ext. 415, or ekabinoff@mote.org.

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EDUCATION

Teachers dive into science

Jason Robertshaw, Mote’s Senior Coordinator of Educational Technology, speaks about Mote research during Mote’s latest Professional Development Workshop for local teachers.

Mote offers Professional Development Workshops in southwest Florida

BY SHELBY ISAACSON Earlier this year, Mote Marine Laboratory launched a series of professional development workshops for southwest Florida teachers. “Teachers are clearly a very important influence on student achievement and we are thrilled to be able to provide opportunities for science-based professional development,” said Aly Busse, Mote’s Assistant Vice President for Education.

Each of the themed workshops aims to connect educators with cutting-edge science and the researchers who lead it at Mote, while also allowing educators to tour behind-the-scenes areas such as research labs. Additionally, educators gain training and practice in various instructional methods and strategies, and they are given access to lesson plans and resources aligned with Florida science standards for use in their classrooms. The workshops are designed to help professionals from various schools and settings work together and learn from one another.

“I feel like the Mote Professional Development Workshops for teachers are so very helpful for getting information that is not provided in other ways,” said Lee Maxwell, a teacher at McIntosh Middle School. “I love that they keep me in touch with actual working scientists who are studying present issues in our environment. Being able to collaborate with other professionals on these subjects is awesome.”

The teacher workshops offer two separate tracks — one for those teaching high school and another for younger grades, made

possible by generous funding support from The Koski Family Foundation, Inc., and The Charles T. Bauer Charitable Foundation, respectively. The elementary track focuses more on modeling science inquiry methods with current scientific research, clarifying links to state education standards, and providing opportunities for interdisciplinary connections. The high school workshops provide more focused marine science content as well as integrated, practical, hands-on training in digital technology that can be incorporated into classrooms.

“Teachers are incredibly busy and their time is very valuable!”

Busse said. “We designed these separate tracks to allow the educators we’re serving to get the most out of each workshop. We strive to empower these teachers with real scientific content and resources that they can actually use in their classrooms.”

“Mote workshops provide me with real-world applications of research,” said Lemon Bay High School teacher Mia Conlon. “They also allow me to make connections with scientists. My students want to know ‘Why does this matter?’ Now I have more answers.”

Mote’s Education Department is planning more workshops for 2018. Learn about these and other professional development opportunities: Visit mote.org/education, click “College & Adult” and look for professional development opportunities.

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MOTE MILESTONES

Bottlenose dolphin baby boom

BY DR. PHIL GRAVINESE & HAYLEY RUTGER

BY SHELBY ISAACSON

Ocean acidification — a chemistry change accelerated by human impacts to the environment — is a known challenge for ocean animals that build hard skeletons and shells, which may weaken or even dissolve as water acidifies, or lowers in pH. However, its possible effects on many marine animals, including their delicate young, remain mysterious.

A record number of bottlenose dolphin calves were born this year in Sarasota Bay, Florida, according to the Sarasota Dolphin Research Program (SDRP), a partnership between the Chicago Zoological Society and Mote Marine Laboratory. During the 2017 calving season, 20 new calves joined up to five concurrent generations of long-term resident dolphins in the Bay.

Now, Mote Marine Laboratory Postdoctoral Research Fellow Dr. Philip Gravinese is examining how lowered pH might affect one of Florida’s treasured and tasty fishery species: stone crabs.

Since the initiation of their research in 1970, SDRP has documented births by female dolphins ranging in age from 6 to 48 years, including the oldest known bottlenose dolphin, Nicklo, who is now 67, and Ginger, a dolphin rehabilitated and released by Mote’s Dolphin & Whale Hospital in 2009, who had her second calf this year.

The stone crab industry occurs primarily along Florida’s west coast, where in 2015 it was valued at $36.7 million. However, since 2000, the average annual commercial harvest has declined by about 25 percent. Most stone crab fishing occurs in coastal habitats that are suffering from development, which is causing increased nutrient-rich runoff. As a result, some coastal habitats in Florida are experiencing seasonal declines in pH three times faster than the rate of ocean acidification anticipated for global oceans by the end of the century.

Previous work shows that stone crab embryonic development slows by 24 percent and hatching success decreases by 28 percent with exposure to lower pH. This could represent a significant reduction in the supply of larvae (baby stone crabs) and a potential bottleneck for new recruits into the fishery.

Now, Gravinese seeks to learn how exposure of stone crab mothers to low pH may affect the tolerance of their offspring, particularly if the embryos (offspring inside the eggs) undergo complete development or embryogenesis in low pH. Gravinese is currently conducting an experiment to determine if stone crab embryos developed in low pH conditions experience “generational carry-over effects” (from mother to larvae) on their development, hatching success and larval survival, including potentially greater resilience to future decreases in pH. This work is in collaboration with Dr. Emily Hall, Manager of Mote’s Ocean Acidification Research Program.

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After a gestation period of about12.5 months, bottlenose dolphin calves are typically born tail first. Calves usually range from 42 to 52 inches long and weigh 30 to 45 pounds. During their first few months, calves are normally darker than adults and their sides feature creases from folding in the uterus; these creases usually disappear within six months.

Successful calving years are good news for ecosystem health in Sarasota Bay. For example, 83 percent of dolphin pregnancies identified from ultrasound during health assessments in Sarasota Bay were found to result in calves swimming alongside their mothers. This stands in sharp contrast to the 20 percent success documented during comparable research in Barataria Bay, Louisiana, which experienced heavy oiling from the Deepwater Horizon spill, and pointed to one of the major impacts of the spill.

“Bottlenose dolphins are sentinels of the health of our coastal ecosystem in Sarasota,” said Dr. Randall Wells, SDRP Director.

“They breathe the same air, swim in the same waters, and eat the same fish we do. Because of our consistent long-term research, our local bottlenose dolphins also serve as a reference population for NOAA and other research partners worldwide.”

Photo by: Sarasota Dolphin Research Program / CZS. Photo taken under NMFS Permit No. 15543.

Acid test for tasty crabs

Photo by: wavebreak3 / Adobe Stock

MOTE MILESTONES

Gift helping coral “gardens” grow

BY SHELBY ISAACSON Coral reef restoration and research recently got a boost from the Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation, which awarded a $300,000 grant for Mote Marine Laboratory’s efforts to restore rapidly declining reefs in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.

Mote’s goals include: producing more coral microfragments — small pieces that grow at accelerated rates in the Lab’s land-based nursery — for outplanting in reef restoration efforts; continuing genetic testing of coral to measure resiliency for future ocean conditions; and training international researchers in reef restoration.

These efforts will support one of Mote’s major objectives: outplanting at least 25,000 corals into the wild during the coming year.

Get beach conditions from more Florida shorelines

BY HAYLEY RUTGER Mote’s Beach Conditions Reporting System is growing!

Now, 36 beaches along Florida’s Gulf Coast offer daily updates, including surf and wind conditions, beach debris, red tide impacts (or lack thereof), and more.

Go to visitbeaches.org and look for the newest sites, all in Pinellas County: Treasure Island, St. Pete Beach, Indian Shores, Madeira Beach and Pass-a-Grille Beach.

Red tide or not, report it!

Beachgoers can use Mote’s new smartphone app CSIC (Citizen Science Information Collaboration) to report the presence or absence of impacts from red tide, Karenia brevis algae blooms. If you experience respiratory irritation on the beach, see discolored coastal water or dead fish — or you simply want to report a great beach day free of these impacts — then search “Mote CSIC” in your App Store or Google Play, download the free app and post your update today.

“This grant builds on the Barancik Foundation’s last grant, which helped Mote to construct its new state-of-the-art facility in the Florida Keys,” said Teri A Hansen, President and CEO of the Barancik Foundation. “Our Foundation believes in supporting efforts that will make a lasting impact for the environment. Investing in Mote’s research and restoration efforts will do just that.”

At Mote’s new Elizabeth Moore International Center for Coral Reef Research & Restoration (IC2R3), Mote researchers raise and study more than 20 species of hard corals, using fragments “rescued” by the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary following boat groundings and other disturbances. Mote’s broodstock reserve facility maintains optimal light and water chemistry conditions to produce thousands of coral fragments for reef restoration and for studies on how best to restore reefs for the warmer, more acidified oceans expected in the future.

IC2R3 also provides a unique base of operations for hundreds of researchers from more than 60 other institutions around the world who are working to understand, restore and protect reefs. Part of the Barancik Foundation’s gift will help Mote conduct trainings for these visiting researchers and students, helping restoration efforts expand and scale up.

“As an independent marine research institution, we know that supporters like the Barancik Foundation are vital for the success of Mote’s mission,” said Dr. Michael P. Crosby, President and CEO of Mote. “Mote’s unique culture of innovative research has three core pillars – passion for science, partnerships and philanthropy – that enable meaningful impacts.”

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MOTE MILESTONES

WINTER 2017-18 LEGACY SOCIETY SPOTLIGHT

Tom Landers: Longtime volunteer, lifelong giver

BY AMANDA CHANDLER

Share your Aquarium stories for new summer Mote Magazine!

BY HAYLEY RUTGER While you’re surfing the Web in 2018, check out our new summer Mote Magazine. This online-only issue — focused on the animals and people of our public Mote Aquarium — will be available at mote.org/motemagazine starting in July.

Share your favorite story from visiting Mote Aquarium for a chance to have it published in the summer issue. During your visit, did you learn something amazing, marvel at marine animals you’ve never seen up close before, leave with a smile after meeting a caring volunteer, or get a laugh from the funny questions your youngster asked?

Submit your story (one to four paragraphs long), with a photo, by clicking on the summer Mote Magazine survey link at: mote.org/motemagazine Of course, Mote Magazine will also continue publishing in print during spring, fall and winter, bringing you amazing stories of Mote science, marine wildlife, education, technology and more!

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Two decades ago, Tom Landers started volunteering at Mote — the first place he visited after moving to his home on Lido Key. Volunteering as a docent near the sea turtles and manatees in Mote Aquarium was a natural fit for Landers, who taught U.S. History for 32 years in Milwaukee and wanted to learn more about marine life and his new coastal neighborhood. “Mote is a unique place to learn about the resources and natural treasures of the Gulf area,” Landers said. “I wanted to learn more about the things I was seeing on my beach walks and share that knowledge with others.”

Volunteer service was just the beginning of Landers’ legacy of giving. Inspired by his long-term commitment to Mote, he became a major donor and a member of Mote’s Legacy Society, leaving a gift to the Lab as part of his estate.

Landers said it is important for everyone to consider supporting the organizations that have had the greatest impacts on their lives: “When you find an organization like Mote that is worthy of your volunteer time, why wouldn’t you consider it in your estate planning? Becoming a member of Mote’s Legacy Society is a way of extending the time you gave to that organization.”

As Landers often says, “You have your learning years, your earning years, and your giving years, and this can be continued through your legacy giving.”

2018 Special Events Check mote.org/events or see other links specified below for event details and registration. Registration is required for all events unless otherwise stated.

Dec. 9: NEW EXHIBIT “Sea Debris: Awareness through Art” featuring “Washed Ashore” opens to the public.

See it from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. daily at Mote Aquarium, Sarasota. Included with normal Aquarium admission.

See page 14 or go to mote.org/seadebris for a list of 2017-2018 special events focused on “Sea Debris.”

JANUARY

MAY

Jan. 9: n OPEN HOUSE for fifth-year anniversary of Mote’s Boca Grande Outreach Office. 5:30 p.m. 480 East Railroad Ave., Railroad Plaza, Boca Grande. mote.org/boca

May 1-2: n 24-hour Giving Challenge. During this online fundraiser, your support for Mote will go even further through an important community matching opportunity. Visit thegivingpartner.guidestar.org and search “Mote.”

FEBRUARY Feb. 22: n Mote Legacy Society Members Only: LEGACY SOCIETY BRUNCH, honoring those who have committed to support Mote through estate plans or other planned gifts. 10 a.m. Emily & Roland Abraham New Pass Room in Mote’s Keating Marine Education Center, 1599 Ken Thompson Parkway, Sarasota.

Feb. 26: n MOTE’S SPECIAL LECTURE SERIES BEGINS. Ocean-focused lectures on Mondays , Feb. 26–March 26. 6:30 p.m. WAVE Center at Mote Aquarium in Sarasota. Made possible by presenting sponsors Bob & Jill Williams and corporate sponsor PNC Wealth Management. mote.org/lecture Feb. 27: n BOCA GRANDE SCIENCE CAFÉ. 6:30 p.m. The Beach Club at the Gasparilla Inn. Sponsored by U.S. Trust. mote.org/boca Feb. 28: n TEA FOR THE SEA, a celebration of female leadership in science and philanthropy. 2 p.m. Lakewood Ranch Golf & Country Club. mote.org/tea

May 13: n MOTHER’S DAY SPECIAL at Mote Aquarium, Sarasota.

10 a.m.-5 p.m. All mothers get in free with purchase of their accompanied child’s ticket on May 13. (Party must include one paid ticket per free ticket.)

JUNE June 2: n WORLD OCEANS DAY FAMILY FESTIVAL.10 a.m. -1 p.m.

Free with Mote Aquarium admission. mote.org/worldoceansday June 15: n LAST DAY OF “SEA DEBRIS” EXHIBIT at Mote Aquarium.

June 17: n FATHER’S DAY SPECIAL at Mote Aquarium, Sarasota.

10 a.m.-5 p.m. All fathers get in free with purchase of their accompanied child’s ticket on June 17. (Party must include one paid ticket per free ticket.)

Dates TBD: n SHARK DAYS AT MOTE celebrates real sharks and real science with a week of education and entertainment, culminating with the Fins & Fun Family Festival. mote.org/sharkdays

MARCH

JULY

March 6: n COFFEE WITH A SCIENTIST SERIES BEGINS at Mote’s Boca Grande Outreach Office. March 6, 14, 21 & 28. Enjoy a brief research presentation, coffee and pastries. Free. Details and RSVP: mote.org/boca

July 6–8: n SARASOTA LIONFISH DERBY at Mote in Sarasota.

Divers can help harvest invasive lionfish in the Gulf.

March 23: n PARTY ON THE PASS, a casual evening of good food, good fun and good will supporting Mote. 6:30 p.m. Mote Aquarium in Sarasota. mote.org/party

Saturdays in September: n $7 MOTE AQUARIUM ADMISSION for Florida residents.

APRIL April 7: n 32ND ANNUAL RUN FOR THE TURTLES benefiting sea turtle research and conservation. 6:30 a.m. Siesta Key Public Beach, 928 Beach Road. mote.org/run April 14: n MOTE’S OCEAN FEST IN KEY WEST. 10 a.m.-6 p.m.

Florida Keys Eco-Discovery Center and Truman Waterfront in Key West. moteoceanfest.org April 28: n Sarasota Bay Cup: The Mote Marine Laboratory Regatta. Hosted by the Bird Key Yacht Club. mote.org/regatta

SEPTEMBER

OCTOBER Oct. 19: n NIGHT OF FISH, FUN & FRIGHT. Buoys and ghouls can dress up in costume and enjoy a spooktacular night at Mote Aquarium. mote.org/halloween Oct. 13: n MOTE’S ISLAMORADA OCEAN FEST: A Community Celebration. moteoceanfest.org Oct. 27: n OCEANIC EVENING. 6:30 p.m. Ritz-Carlton Sarasota.

Annual black-tie fundraiser for Mote. For sponsorship and tickets: Sofie Wachtmeister, sofiew@mote.org, 941-388-4441, ext. 394.

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Oceanic Evening 2 017

RIGHT: The theme of this year’s gala was the Emerald City from “The Wizard of Oz.”

RIGHT: (Left to Right) Craig Kaplan, Steve Sigler, Nathalie and Nigel Mould.

FAR RIGHT: Mote President & CEO Dr. Michael P. Crosby and Event Chair Judy Graham.

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Photos by: Conor Goulding

RIGHT: Mote Trustee G. Lowe Morrison and Leiza Fitzgerald.

It takes brains, heart and courage to be good stewards of our oceans and planet.

The Mote family celebrated our marine research, education and outreach programs during a dazzling Emerald City themed Oceanic Evening.

LEFT: Mote’s President & CEO Dr. Michael P. Crosby spoke about Mote’s growth and our plans for the future.

FAR LEFT: Margery and Charles Barancik with Teri Hansen, President & CEO of the Charles and Margery Barancik Foundation.

LEFT: Dr. Chris Gelvin, Mote Trustee Elizabeth Moore and Hampton Ballard.

LEFT: (Left to Right) Anne Essner, Mote Trustee Bob Essner, Lisa Morris, and Mote Trustee Dean Eisner.

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1600 Ken Thompson Parkway Sarasota, FL 34236-1004

NON PROFIT ORG. U.S. Postage PAID Lebanon Junction, KY Permit #698

(941) 388-4441 mote.org

Show your Florida colors.

Get your tag today!

www.motereefplate.com By purchasing a Protect Our Reefs license plate, you will be supporting Florida’s underwater treasure. Each plate sold in the state of Florida provides a $25 donation to Mote Marine Laboratory and helps fund coral research, coral reef restoration, education, grants and outreach programs.