An Anne Arundel County angler is now the first officially recognized state record holder for swordfish, which he caught in a tournament July 23 at Ocean City. Annapolis resident Peter Schultz, 36, is the first record holder for the Atlantic division – Swordfish (Xiphias gladius). Schultz caught the 301-pound swordfish while participating in the Big Fish Classic Tournament, landing the record-breaking catch roughly 50 miles offshore at Washington Canyon.

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MD DNR reports a third consecutive year of underwater grass loss in Maryland’s portion of the Chesapeake Bay in 2020. During the annual survey, 34,882 acres of underwater grasses were mapped in Maryland, representing 44% of the state’s 2025 restoration target and 30% of the ultimate restoration goal of 114,065 acres.

Record high rainfall and stream flows into the Chesapeake Bay in 2018 and 2019 led to higher levels of nutrient and sediment pollution, changes in salinity, and poorer water clarity in many of Maryland’s waterways. Habitat conditions remained poor in 2020, and underwater grass abundance declined 13% overall from the previous year.

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MD DNR, Audubon Mid-Atlantic, and Maryland Coastal Bays Program are partnering in research and monitoring efforts to preserve three of Maryland’s state endangered colonial nesting waterbirds — the common tern, royal tern, and black skimmer.

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At the Delaware State Fair in Harrington yesterday evening, Governor John Carney and DNREC Secretary Shawn M. Garvin honored three dedicated Delaware students as DNREC’s Young Environmentalists of the Year for their work to protect, restore or enhance our state’s natural resources, along with a DNREC Volunteer of the Year and this year’s winner of the annual Youth Fishing Tournament.

“Every Delawarean, no matter their age, can have an impact in protecting and conserving our natural resources, while also raising awareness for environmental stewardship. At ages 9, 11 and 18, these three young people have taken a stand as environmental advocates who are already making a difference today for a better tomorrow,” said Secretary Garvin of the 2021 class of Young Environmentalists. “Today, we also recognize a volunteer who has had a long-term impact on DNREC’s Emergency Response mission, and a young angler who caught the biggest fish in this year’s Youth Fishing Tournament, a conservation-minded event to introduce children to the joy of catching – and releasing – a fish.”

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The 2021 recreational and commercial spiny lobster season starts Aug. 6 and runs through March 31, 2022. Learn more about bag limits, size limits, where you can harvest and other regulations at MyFWC.com/Marine by clicking on “Recreational Regulations” and “Lobster,” which is under the “Crabs, Lobster and other Shellfish” tab. Get your recreational license and spiny lobster permit at GoOutdoorsFlorida.com.

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On June 17, 2021, NOAA Fisheries along with partners, the USFWS, the MA DFW, the MA DMF, and the NH FGD, released the Merrimack River Watershed Comprehensive Plan for Diadromous Fishes.

Prior to pervasive dam construction in the late 18th and early 19th century, diadromous fish were abundant in the Merrimack River watershed including American shad, river herring (alewife and blueback herring), sturgeon (Atlantic and shortnose), American eel, striped bass, Atlantic salmon, and sea lamprey. The present day abundance of diadromous species remains a small percentage of historical levels. Restoration efforts during the past 40 years have improved the habitat and connectivity conditions resulting in a modest increase in diadromous fish abundance.

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NOAA Fisheries just announced $6.3 million in funding for 9 new projects and the continuation of 19 multi-year projects under the 2021 Species Recovery Grant Program. From these funds:

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Seagrass Is Harmed by Noise Pollution (Smithsonian Magazine).

Biden’s Climate Plans Are Stunted After Dejected Experts Fled Trump: hundreds of scientists and policy experts left the government during the Trump administration. The jobs remain unfilled nearly six months into President Biden’s term (New York Times).

Sponge-like fossil could be Earth’s earliest known animal (Nature).

Meet the women diversifying shark science (PBS).

Stranded Killer Whale Survives With Help of Good Samaritans: rescuers and wildlife officials kept it cool and wet while waiting for a rising tide. The orca returned to sea about six hours after it was spotted on the rugged shores of an Alaskan island (New York Times).

Advancing Social Equity in and Through Marine Conservation (Frontiers in Marine Science).

Most Invasive Marine Species Swim Under the Radar: half of all invasive species in the ocean have only been studied once, and we only know about the potential impacts of one out of every 10 (Hakai Magazine).

Talented Women in Art and Marine Science (Women in Fisheries).

Video shows salmon injured by unlivable water temperatures after heatwave: a conservation group recorded the video after a heatwave in the Pacific north-west on a day when water temperatures breached 70F (The Guardian).