Only in Maine

Kool, wonder why they went all the way to Limestone.

Probably donated because he was clawless...

[HEADING=2]Rare yellow lobster donated to UNE’s Marine Science Center[/HEADING]
[pressherald.com/2021/02/04/rare-yellow-lobster-donated-to-unes-marine-science-center/]('https://www.pressherald.com/2021/02/04/rare-yellow-lobster-donated-to-unes-marine-science-center/')

By Dennis HoeyFebruary 5, 2021
A Tenants Harbor lobsterman has donated a rare yellow lobster to the University of New England’s Marine Science Center in Biddeford.
[]('')
The New England Aquarium says only one in about 30 million lobsters have yellow shells. Banana is one of them. Courtesy University of New England

The lobster, which has been named Banana, was donated by Marley Babb, a Tenants Harbor lobsterman, who caught the crustacean, UNE said in a news release.

Babb initially contacted the Maine Department of Marine Resources. DMR’s Jessica Waller, who is working on a lobster research project with UNE’s Markus Frederich, arranged to have the lobster delivered to the university’s Biddeford campus. The New England Aquarium said wild lobsters with yellow shells are extremely rare – only one in about 30 million.

The UNE is sharing an $860,000 grant from the National Science Foundation with the Maine Department of Marine Resources, the Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, and Hood College in Maryland to study the impact that a warming Gulf of Maine is having on lobster larvae and their ability to grow to adulthood.

© 2021

A fellow LI refugee in Maine. Starting a business like this at this will be rough; hope they can weather the pandemic. Rockland and nearby Camden have a nice fleet of old schooners, so elegant to see them out on the water. Will be interesting to see how many get through this summer still in business.

[HEADING=2]Couple buys historic schooner and plans windjammer cruises this summer[/HEADING]
[pressherald.com/2021/02/17/couple-buys-historic-schooner-and-plans-windjammer-cruises-this-summer/]('https://www.pressherald.com/2021/02/17/couple-buys-historic-schooner-and-plans-windjammer-cruises-this-summer/')

By Stephen Betts February 17, 2021
[IMG alt="Historic schooner J. & E. Riggin"]https://multifiles.pressherald.com/uploads/sites/10/2021/02/Riggin-%C2%ACMerriam031-1024x683-1.jpg[/IMG]
ROCKLAND — The new owners of the historic Rockland-based schooner J. & E. Riggin are looking forward to their first season of taking passengers around the Midcoast on their own vessel, confident that people are looking for experiences outside.

But Capts. Justin Schaefer and Jocelyn Schmidt – who took ownership of the 120-foot Maine schooner on Feb. 5. – are no strangers to the local windjammer fleet or the Riggin.
[]('')
Capts. Justin Schaefer and Jocelyn Schmidt recently bought the historic schooner J. & E. Riggin. Photo courtesy of J. & E. Riggin.

Schaefer first stepped aboard the Riggin as a 13-year-old passenger when his parents booked a trip 15 years ago. A native of Long Island, New York, Schaefer said he had been on dinghies and 30- to-40-foot yachts but there was something different when he went aboard the Riggin.

“When I stepped on the Riggin, it was such a culture shock. It was new and incredible,” he said.

He said the captains were larger-than-life figures. And the scenery, food and experiences stuck with him.
He returned as a passenger in subsequent summers and then joined the crew. He has served in every role aboard the Riggin except as cook.

“What was appealing was the incredible community of captains and crews. They care about these boats,” he said.

Schmidt’s journey to the Riggin was different. She grew up in Ohio, nowhere near a body of water.
In college, a friend convinced her to take a trip abroad as part of her studies. A history and education major, Schmidt spent part of 2012 aboard a wooden schooner, island hopping in the Caribbean.

“I’ve never experienced learning in such an experiential way,” she said.

And for her, the schooner community drew her to Rockland.

“There are so many like-minded people who work to preserve the history,” she said.

She was working aboard the Victory Chimes, which shares a docking facility with the Riggin in Lermond’s Cove in Rockland. The couple met in 2015 while working on the schooners.

After their engagement, they moved to Florida to work on yachts, all while dreaming of moving back to Maine to buy a windjammer of their own.

The J. & E. Riggin had been owned and operated since January 1998 by Capts. Jon Finger and Annie Mahle of Rockland. Finger and Mahle had met aboard the schooner Stephen Taber when he was mate and she was the mess cook. Capt. Ken Barnes who owned the Taber at that time performed their wedding ceremony.

“Annie and I are incredibly proud and blessed to have been the stewards of the Riggin for so many years,” Finger said Tuesday. “The opportunity to pass the baton of stewardship to another couple who would take her forward into the future is exactly what every Maine windjammer owner dreams of. These National Historic vessels are our American history and that we could be a small part of helping her move forward into the future is a gift.”

Schaefer and Schmidt are honored to take on the stewardship of the J. & E. Riggin.

“We feel privileged to take ownership of this historic ship and carry on Jon and Annie’s legacy of offering authentic and memorable sailing experiences,” Schaefer said.

The Riggin was built as an oyster dredger in 1927 at Stowaman’s Shipyard in Dorchester, New Jersey, for Capt. Charles Riggin and named for his sons Jacob and Edward. Capts. Dave and Sue Allen of Rockland bought the schooner in 1977 and converted her into a passenger sailing vessel.

The ship was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1991.

The Riggin can carry 24 passengers.

The new owners said they had no hesitation buying a passenger schooner in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“No one is traveling abroad. People are looking for experiences outside,” Schaefer said. “A schooner offers an adventure outside in the fresh air.”

He said each cabin has its own ventilation.

Adhering to COVID-19 guidelines this summer, the Riggin will offer three, four, and six-day eco-friendly sailing vacations from Rockland Harbor.

Schooners have long been an important economic engine, bringing in thousands of visitors each year to Rockland and Camden. A study in 2003 found that four schooners that were docking at Lermond’s Cove generated an annual economic impact of $1 million.

This was the second change of ownership in the past several months of a Rockland-based schooner.

Captains Doug and Linda Lee of Rockland sold the schooner Heritage last September to longtime crew members Ben Welzenbach and Sean Grimes, both licensed windjammer captains and fellow mates aboard the Schooner Heritage for the past seven years,

[USER=90]@Old Mud[/USER] - Sheesh Don, you never told me you lived in the "Cool Little City"!! That one went right over my head.

I'm still confused why "City of Ships" isn't good enough? Must be all them Birkenstock-wearing PFAs moving in not wanting to highlight that warship construction is the city's bread and butter.

All I know is when I'm traveling south on US-1 and passing over the Kennebec I'm always straining to see what's on the ways and drydocks at Bath Iron Works...

[HEADING=2]Bath will no longer refer to itself as ‘Maine’s Cool Little City’[/HEADING]
[pressherald.com/2021/02/18/bath-will-no-longer-refer-to-itself-as-maines-cool-little-city/]('https://www.pressherald.com/2021/02/18/bath-will-no-longer-refer-to-itself-as-maines-cool-little-city/')

By Kathleen O'Brien February 18, 2021

[]('')
Bath’s existing logo depicts the Wyoming, the largest wooden schooner to be built in the U.S. It was built by Percy and Small shipyard, where the Maine Maritime Museum now sits. Photo courtesy of Lindsey Goudreau

BATH — Bath city officials are looking for a new city logo that better compliments the city flag and retiring its moniker as “Maine’s Cool Little City.”

Lindsey Goudreau, Bath’s marketing and communication specialist, said the new logo will be used on the city’s website, social media accounts, brochures and signs around the city, including the sign on between the northbound and southbound lanes of Leeman Highway, welcoming people to Bath.

The logo can also be used, with permission, by businesses, nonprofits and schools within the city.
The existing logo was created around 2010 by Briggs Advertising, which was based in Bath at the time. The city was also given the tagline “Maine’s Cool Little City,” but it was never widely adopted.

“Coming into 2021, the city’s Economic Development Committee felt it was time to revisit the logo, and the ‘Maine’s Cool Little City’ tagline, which, we felt, just hasn’t stuck,” said Goudreau. “We hope that the new logo compliments the city flag and has a more progressive, friendly look while still referencing the city’s iconic maritime history.”

Goudreau said the city will spend up to $5,000 to cover the cost of the design of the refreshed logo and branding elements, including colors and fonts. That money is budgeted for, funded by tax revenue from Bath Iron Work’s shipyard on Washington Street.

The $5,000 will not cover the cost of replacing signs or other media that bear the existing logo. Goudreau said she doesn’t yet know how much replacing those items will cost.

While the new logo will be widely used, it will not replace the city’s seal, which is stamped on legal documents, or the city flag.

Although a logo isn’t essential to a city’s success, a logo makes a city unique and recognizable much like a good brand logo increases a company’s brand value, said Sally Johnstone, president of the economic development group Main Street Bath.

“The brand value of Bath is wanting to live here or shop here or open a business here,” said Johnstone. “We want to clean up our logo, modernize it and make it recognizable.”

The existing oval logo features a simple blue and white color palette and depicts waves and a six-masted ship. The waves represent the Kennebec River where Bath is perched and the ship is a nod to the Wyoming, the largest wooden schooner built in the U.S., according to the Maine Maritime Museum in Bath. The Wyoming was built in 1909 at the Percy and Small shipyard, where the Maine Maritime Museum now sits on Washington Street.

The city requested the new logo use colors that match the city flag and maintain certain elements that honor Bath’s history. Much like the existing logo, the red, yellow, white and blue flag, created in 2013 by Jeremy Hammond, depicts waves and a ship.

Goudreau said the city had received eight logo submissions as of Tuesday.

Mari Esoco, former Bath councilor, was on the committee that chose the existing logo and said she thinks the existing logo looks “timeless,” but understands it’s time for it to be updated. Like Goudreau and Johnstone, Eosco said she hopes the new logo will echo the city’s shipbuilding roots, as previous logos have.

“I think we’ll forever be known as the city of ships,” she said. “That’s who we are and Bath has done a very good job of celebrating our shipbuilding heritage. That’s what we’re known for and will continue to be known for.”

Briggs Advertising did not return requests for comment Wednesday.

Proposals must be submitted by Monday, Feb. 22 at 11:59 p.m. to be considered. Submissions can be sent to Goudreau at [[email protected]]('https://www.pressherald.com/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection')

Anyone got a spare $5 million handy?? I guess John misses Kirstie who sold her "cottage" a few years ago...John Travolta’s Islesboro home on market for $5 million[pressherald.com/2021/02/19/john-travoltas-islesboro-home-on-market-for-5-million/]('https://www.pressherald.com/2021/02/19/john-travoltas-islesboro-home-on-market-for-5-million/')By Leslie Bridgers February 19, 2021
[]('')
This 1999 photo shows John Travolta’s house on Islesboro. Jack Milton/Staff Photographer
John Travolta’s Islesboro home is up for sale.

Listed for $5 million by Legacy Properties Sotheby’s International Realty, the 10,830-square-foot oceanfront home has 20 bedrooms and sits on 48 acres on the island off the midcoast.

[[SIZE=5]INSTAGRAM LINK[/SIZE]]('https://www.instagram.com/p/CLexQxkAtHq/')

Built in 1903, the home at 299 Drexel Lane has been featured in Architectural Digest, where Travolta and his wife Kelly Preston, who died last year from breast cancer, said they bought the house as newlyweds in 1991 after visiting fellow actor Kirstie Alley on the island.

The actor, 67, became a star in the 1970s for his roles in “Saturday Night Fever,” for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for best actor, and “Grease.” He was nominated a second time for the best actor Oscar for his role in “Pulp Fiction” in 1995.

John Travolta is selling his place

[URL unfurl="true"]https://nypost.com/2021/02/19/john-travolta-lists-maine-house-for-5m-after-kelly-preston-death/[/URL]

Forget it - I can't drive my Boeing 707 right up to it

[USER=90]@Old Mud[/USER] - Sheesh Don, you never told me you lived in the "Cool Little City"!! That one went right over my head.

I'm still confused why "City of Ships" isn't good enough? Must be all them Birkenstock-wearing PFAs moving in not wanting to highlight that warship construction is the city's bread and butter.

All I know is when I'm traveling south on US-1 and passing over the Kennebec I'm always straining to see what's on the ways and drydocks at Bath Iron Works...

[HEADING=2]Bath will no longer refer to itself as ‘Maine’s Cool Little City’[/HEADING]
[pressherald.com/2021/02/18/bath-will-no-longer-refer-to-itself-as-maines-cool-little-city/]('https://www.pressherald.com/2021/02/18/bath-will-no-longer-refer-to-itself-as-maines-cool-little-city/')

By Kathleen O'Brien February 18, 2021

[]('')
Bath’s existing logo depicts the Wyoming, the largest wooden schooner to be built in the U.S. It was built by Percy and Small shipyard, where the Maine Maritime Museum now sits. Photo courtesy of Lindsey Goudreau

BATH — Bath city officials are looking for a new city logo that better compliments the city flag and retiring its moniker as “Maine’s Cool Little City.”

Lindsey Goudreau, Bath’s marketing and communication specialist, said the new logo will be used on the city’s website, social media accounts, brochures and signs around the city, including the sign on between the northbound and southbound lanes of Leeman Highway, welcoming people to Bath.

The logo can also be used, with permission, by businesses, nonprofits and schools within the city.
The existing logo was created around 2010 by Briggs Advertising, which was based in Bath at the time. The city was also given the tagline “Maine’s Cool Little City,” but it was never widely adopted.

“Coming into 2021, the city’s Economic Development Committee felt it was time to revisit the logo, and the ‘Maine’s Cool Little City’ tagline, which, we felt, just hasn’t stuck,” said Goudreau. “We hope that the new logo compliments the city flag and has a more progressive, friendly look while still referencing the city’s iconic maritime history.”

Goudreau said the city will spend up to $5,000 to cover the cost of the design of the refreshed logo and branding elements, including colors and fonts. That money is budgeted for, funded by tax revenue from Bath Iron Work’s shipyard on Washington Street.

The $5,000 will not cover the cost of replacing signs or other media that bear the existing logo. Goudreau said she doesn’t yet know how much replacing those items will cost.

While the new logo will be widely used, it will not replace the city’s seal, which is stamped on legal documents, or the city flag.

Although a logo isn’t essential to a city’s success, a logo makes a city unique and recognizable much like a good brand logo increases a company’s brand value, said Sally Johnstone, president of the economic development group Main Street Bath.

“The brand value of Bath is wanting to live here or shop here or open a business here,” said Johnstone. “We want to clean up our logo, modernize it and make it recognizable.”

The existing oval logo features a simple blue and white color palette and depicts waves and a six-masted ship. The waves represent the Kennebec River where Bath is perched and the ship is a nod to the Wyoming, the largest wooden schooner built in the U.S., according to the Maine Maritime Museum in Bath. The Wyoming was built in 1909 at the Percy and Small shipyard, where the Maine Maritime Museum now sits on Washington Street.

The city requested the new logo use colors that match the city flag and maintain certain elements that honor Bath’s history. Much like the existing logo, the red, yellow, white and blue flag, created in 2013 by Jeremy Hammond, depicts waves and a ship.

Goudreau said the city had received eight logo submissions as of Tuesday.

Mari Esoco, former Bath councilor, was on the committee that chose the existing logo and said she thinks the existing logo looks “timeless,” but understands it’s time for it to be updated. Like Goudreau and Johnstone, Eosco said she hopes the new logo will echo the city’s shipbuilding roots, as previous logos have.

“I think we’ll forever be known as the city of ships,” she said. “That’s who we are and Bath has done a very good job of celebrating our shipbuilding heritage. That’s what we’re known for and will continue to be known for.”

Briggs Advertising did not return requests for comment Wednesday.

Proposals must be submitted by Monday, Feb. 22 at 11:59 p.m. to be considered. Submissions can be sent to Goudreau at [[email protected]]('https://www.pressherald.com/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection')

Well to me that sucks !!! I'm not against all change just against change for no other reason than "lets change" Bath is the city of ships, it will always be the city of ships. How we have become BOOBS that can come into a town we were not born into and dare to change it. Bath wouldn't even be here if it were not for Bath Iron Works. Maybe some of those douch bags that demostrate for us to turn our war ships into plowshares have struck a nerve with our new ministration. UGH, what next !!!! Oh yeah i live here, i thought you knew.

House for sale.

Well to me that sucks !!! I'm not against all change just against change for no other reason than "lets change" Bath is the city of ships, it will always be the city of ships. How we have become BOOBS that can come into a town we were not born into and dare to change it. Bath wouldn't even be here if it were not for Bath Iron Works. Maybe some of those douch bags that demostrate for us to turn our war ships into plowshares have struck a nerve with our new ministration. UGH, what next !!!! Oh yeah i live here, i thought you knew.

House for sale.

that's it Don - don't sell - take to the streets............

[MEDIA=youtube]4Epue9X8bpc[/MEDIA]

that's it Don - don't sell - take to the streets............

[MEDIA=youtube]4Epue9X8bpc[/MEDIA]

Thanks larry but After seeing what happened a couple of weeks ago think ill pass on that. :giggle:

In today’s Newspaper

It's good to be the King!! At least up here, it means we're not relegated to drinking Donkey Piss with our lobstahs!! It's also nice to say, "Take that Bernie!!"

[HEADING=2]Maine now has the most breweries per capita of any US state
[/HEADING]
In this Jan. 22, 2021, file photo, Ethan Wyman reaches for a beer the server left outside his heated, outdoor bubble at Rising Tide brewery in Portland. Credit: Troy R. Bennett / BDN

After many years of lagging behind Vermont, Maine now officially has the highest number of breweries per capita in the country.

As of 2021, Maine has one brewery for every 8,654 people. That’s [156 active breweries in total]('https://mainebrewersguild.org/') as of this year for 1,350,141 Mainers, according to the Maine Brewers Guild and the U.S. Census Bureau.

By contrast, Vermont has 72 active [breweries]('https://www.vermontbrewers.com/about/economic-impact/'), and a population of 623,347, for a total of one brewery for every 8,657 people — meaning the Pine Tree State has just edged out the Green Mountain State.

[IMG alt="Touring Salvage One Architectural Warehouse"]
Just behind Maine and Vermont are states like Montana, Colorado and Oregon, the latter two of which have long-standing craft beer scenes that date back into the 1980s.

Maine’s numbers are unsurprising, given the explosive growth of the state’s craft beer industry in the past decade. In 2013, Maine had 35 registered breweries. Eight years later, that number is still growing. An [economic impact study]('https://bangordailynews.com/2019/05/23/news/study-maine-beer-makers-add-2-billion-each-year-to-states-economy/') released in 2019 found that the beer industry and related activities contribute $2 billion to Maine’s economy each year and nearly 16,000 jobs.

“Maine’s position as the state with the most breweries per capita isn’t just a statistic – it’s representative of hundreds of Mainers who have pursued an entrepreneurial dream and shared their knowledge and expertise with their competitors that have followed,” said Sean Sullivan, executive director of the Maine Brewers Guild.

It is further indication that Maine has emerged as one of North America’s leading beer-making regions, attracting beer-lovers from all over the country and the world. Beer tourism in Maine has gone from a cottage industry to a major part of Maine’s overall tourism economy, with entire vacation packages designed around traveling to visit Maine’s breweries, which are scattered all over the state.

I knew you would find that one :) That's a good thing !! Now when the next Right whale is bowled over by a ship and they shut down the lobstermen we'll all have something to do. :giggle:

I can remember as a kid, there was Narraganset and not much else, until the Molson and Moosehead started coming in.

So late yesterday afternoon, the Admiral and I were sitting by the firepit, hearing NOTHING with the exception of seagulls, robins and an occasional loon. Suddenly from the southwest there was one hell of a racket, and we couldn't figure out what it was. Turned on the evening news at 6:00 and we were edumacated, as the shipyard is 3.5 nmi as the eagle flies from Chez Roccus...

[HEADING=2]Spectacular launch starts career of new, Maine-built state ferry[/HEADING]
The new Maine State Ferry Service boat, Captain Richard G. Spear, set sail in East Boothbay on Friday.

BOOTHBAY, Maine — There may have been a lot of nervous moments Friday for the president of the Washburn and Doughty Shipyard.

“A launch is nerve-wracking and tense on a good day, and then you add a little drama (and) its nerve-wracking,” said Katie Doughty Maddox.

She was breathing easier by then, after the new Maine State Ferry Service boat, Captain Richard G. Spear finally slid down the ways and into the Damariscotta River.

For about 15 minutes, Maddox and some others must have wondered if the 154-foot ferry would move at all, as the big steel ferry seemed reluctant to leave the space where it was built. Finally, with intense work by the launch crew and steady pulling from a tugboat in the river, the Captain Spear slowly edged out until gravity and grease on the ways took over. Then, with horns in the harbor blasting, she slid into the sunlight for the first time and the saltwater rose along her hull.

It was a big moment for the shipyard and the Maine DOT, which hasn’t built a new ferry in Maine since 1993.

“Obviously we have an obligation to go out to bid and get value for the taxpayers,” said DOT Commissioner Bruce Van Note, “but I can tell you when it comes to a Maine firm right here in East Boothbay…it's really fantastic to know Maine people built this Maine vessel to serve Maine people.”

The new ferry is named for Maine Maritime Academy graduate Richard Spear, who was the first person hired by the Maine State Ferry Service and was its manager for 30 years.

Washburn and Doughty is nationally known as a builder of tugboats that work all over the world, but Maddox said building the new ferry was a privilege.

“It means everything, it's wonderful to build these boats in Maine, with Maine craftsmen. It’s a real sense of pride for builders to see our boats on the water in Maine.”

The new ferry needs some final work, followed by sea trials, and is then expected to start work on Penobscot Bay, making the daily runs between Rockland and Vinalhaven. Those are the same water the vessel’s namesake sailed for decades, piloting earlier ferries.

The MDOT said the Captain Richard Spear is designed to carry up to 23 cars and 250 passengers and cost about $10.9 million. Ferries have a 30-year lifespan, said Van Note, and the DOT is already planning to go out for bid on another vessel this summer, at about the same time the new one begins its long work life.

When you go "clamming" in Maine, it means you're digging soft shells (steamahs). Digging clams here is one of the trio of "Ass Higher Than Head" jobs in Maine, Clamming, Digging Seaworms for Bait, and Raking Wild Blueberries.

Now IF ONLY the warming Gulf of Maine waters would encourage a migration of tog up here!! When my granddaughters are out, we routinely throw a crab trap off the dock and fill up a bucket with Green Crabs in maybe 15 minutes. Nothing like an unlimited bait supply...

[HEADING=2]Clammers digging through pandemic, but shellfish are fewer[/HEADING]
[pressherald.com/2021/04/17/clammers-digging-through-pandemic-but-shellfish-are-fewer/]('https://www.pressherald.com/2021/04/17/clammers-digging-through-pandemic-but-shellfish-are-fewer/')

By PATRICK WHITTLE April 17, 2021
[]('')
Mike Soule hauls bags of clams on a sled across a mudflat in Freeport on Thursday. In recent years, Maine diggers have harvested about 1.5 million pounds of clams, significantly less than in decades past. Associated Press/Robert F. Bukaty

PORTLAND, Maine — Chad Coffin has spent the coronavirus pandemic much as he has the previous several decades: on the mudflats of Maine, digging for the clams that draw tourists to seafood shacks around New England.

But he’s running into a problem: few clams.

“There just isn’t the clams that there used to be,” Coffin said. “I don’t want to be negative, I’m just trying to be realistic.”

It’s a familiar problem experienced by New England’s clamdiggers. More New Englanders have dug in the tidal mudflats during the last year, but the clams aren’t cooperating.

The coronavirus pandemic has inspired more people in the Northeastern states, particularly Maine and Massachusetts, to dig for soft-shell clams, which are also called “steamers” and have been used to make chowder and fried clams for generations. The era of social distancing during the coronavirus pandemic is conducive to the often solitary [work]('https://apnews.com/article/7876449619615c6cfa2534afab19eefa'), said Coffin, the president of the Maine Clammers Association, which represents commercial clammers.

But the U.S. haul of clams has dipped in recent years as the industry has contended with clam-eating predators and warming waters, and 2020 and early 2021 have been especially difficult, industry members said.

In Maine, the largest clam producing state, fishermen produced their lowest haul in more than 90 years at a little more than 1.3 million pounds in 2020. Nationwide totals aren’t compiled yet, but Maine’s haul typically accounts for more than half the U.S. total, and hauls in other clamming states such as Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New York have been trending downward in recent years.

The lack of clams has contributed to higher prices to consumers, said Coffin. It has also sparked fears that future generations of clams will be even smaller in number, he said.

“A few of the guys who are clamming are making good money now, but they’re basically selling their future,” Coffin said. “The resource keeps diminishing.”

The clamming industry has had to contend with more marine predators of clams such as green crabs and milky ribbon worm in recent years. Scientists have said the predators have been encouraged by the warming waters of key habitats such as the Gulf of Maine, which is one of the fastest-warming bodies of water in the world.

The clam shortfall has coincided with a time of high demand for clams, and that has served to increase prices. Soft-shell clams are often selling for about $7 per pound at retail, which is about 40% more than normal and a surprisingly high number for spring, Coffin said. Demand for clams is usually highest in summer.

Soft-shell clams were the second-most valuable species, after lobsters, in Maine last year, state records show. The clams were worth about $15.7 million at the docks, a competitive total with recent years, and $2.39 per pound, which was the second-highest figure in recorded history.

The prices are rising due to factors such as interest in local food during the pandemic and a limited supply of the clams on the market, said Brian Beal, a professor of marine ecology at the University of Maine at Machias whose research focuses on shellfish. The bump in price is nice in the short term for clam harvesters, but the long-term problems are a major threat to the fishery, he said.

“It’s interesting that the demand is still there for soft-shell clams, and that demand is driving that price, and that is driving people to go collect clams,” Beal said. “We still have to look at the historic trends. One way of looking at it is they were the lowest in a long time.”

The lack of clams has been a problem for commercial and recreational clammers alike. The predator crabs, which originated in Europe, are also a problem for hobby clammers on Cape Cod, said John Townes, president of the Barnstable Association for Recreational Shellfishing.

“They’re a horribly invasive species,” he said. “They’re big predators.”

With the huge population explosion of mice and chipmunks over this past winter, I love seeing foxes around. That being said, when you're taking a walk and see a fox that doesn't bolt the second he sees you, it does give you some pause, forcing you to look for a stick to whack it with if it starts after you...

[HEADING=2]Fox terrorizes Topsham neighborhood[/HEADING]
[pressherald.com/2021/04/17/fox-terrorizes-topsham-neighborhood/]('https://www.pressherald.com/2021/04/17/fox-terrorizes-topsham-neighborhood/')

By Darcie Moore April 17, 2021

A fox tried to attack at least three people in the dense Topsham Heights neighborhood Saturday before a Middle Street resident shot the animal after it chased him into his home.

The fox had porcupine quills in its face, which Topsham Police Sgt. Mark Gilliam said is a telltale sign that the animal was likely rabid, as healthy animals normally would not attack porcupines.

The police got their first complaint about the fox hiding under a porch on Cameron Way off Winter Street at 10:17 a.m.

About 45 minutes later police and a Maine game warden were called to Western Avenue after the gray fox attacked a dog and a 69-year-old man.

Police said the man’s skin wasn’t punctured — according to the CDC, rabies can be transmitted through the broken skin of the victim that comes in contact with saliva from an infected animal.

By 11:18 a.m. police were called to Bauer Lane where the fox attacked a dog and a 57-year-old woman. Although the animal attack didn’t appear to break the skin, Gilliam said the woman went to the hospital to be evaluated as a precaution.

The fox continued through the neighborhood, scratching at the back door of a home on A Street.
Gilliam said the fox then chased a man into his home on Middle Street, who got a gun and shot the fox after it charged him. That was at around 1 p.m.

The fox was taken to the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention in Augusta to be tested for rabies.

Rabies is a viral disease transmitted primarily through bites and exposure to saliva or spinal fluid from an infected animal. It infects the nervous system of mammals, making the infected animal unusually aggressive. Vaccines are completely effective in humans, but rabies is fatal if left untreated.

A rabid fox also attacked a Mallett Drive resident in Topsham on April 4. It was the fourth fox attack in Topsham in two weeks. Police investigated a fox attack on a person on March 22 at the Topsham Fairgrounds. That fox was killed by police, but not tested because the person involved was not injured.

There were other fox attacks on dogs around Winter and Summer streets later that same week. Police were unable to locate that fox.

Topsham residents were asked to contact police at (207) 725-4337 if they or their pets come into contact with a wild animal acting strangely and to make sure they keep their animals’ rabies vaccinations up to date.

Gilliam said Saturday that residents should be diligent when on walks and keep their pets leashed.
Gilliam also cautioned residents about shooting at wild animals within neighborhoods due to safety concerns.

The southern Midcoast region saw its first rabid fox encounter of 2021 in January when a fox tried to bite two children in their West Point Road backyard in Phippsburg before it was killed.

Incidents of rabid animals attacking people and pets in the region rose sharply in 2018, when there were nine attacks in Brunswick.

No animals have tested positive for rabies in Brunswick this year according to the Maine CDC, which hasn’t updated rabies data since March 31. However, a woman in Brunswick was attacked by a fox on March 26 before the animal was killed with the help of neighbors. That fox was not tested.

Bath saw a rabies surge in 2019 and early 2020, with 18 people and pets attacked by rabid animals.

With the huge population explosion of mice and chipmunks over this past winter, I love seeing foxes around. That being said, when you're taking a walk and see a fox that doesn't bolt the second he sees you, it does give you some pause, forcing you to look for a stick to whack it with if it starts after you...

[HEADING=2]Fox terrorizes Topsham neighborhood[/HEADING]
[pressherald.com/2021/04/17/fox-terrorizes-topsham-neighborhood/]('https://www.pressherald.com/2021/04/17/fox-terrorizes-topsham-neighborhood/')

By Darcie Moore April 17, 2021

A fox tried to attack at least three people in the dense Topsham Heights neighborhood Saturday before a Middle Street resident shot the animal after it chased him into his home.

The fox had porcupine quills in its face, which Topsham Police Sgt. Mark Gilliam said is a telltale sign that the animal was likely rabid, as healthy animals normally would not attack porcupines.

The police got their first complaint about the fox hiding under a porch on Cameron Way off Winter Street at 10:17 a.m.

About 45 minutes later police and a Maine game warden were called to Western Avenue after the gray fox attacked a dog and a 69-year-old man.

Police said the man’s skin wasn’t punctured — according to the CDC, rabies can be transmitted through the broken skin of the victim that comes in contact with saliva from an infected animal.

By 11:18 a.m. police were called to Bauer Lane where the fox attacked a dog and a 57-year-old woman. Although the animal attack didn’t appear to break the skin, Gilliam said the woman went to the hospital to be evaluated as a precaution.

The fox continued through the neighborhood, scratching at the back door of a home on A Street.
Gilliam said the fox then chased a man into his home on Middle Street, who got a gun and shot the fox after it charged him. That was at around 1 p.m.

The fox was taken to the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention in Augusta to be tested for rabies.

Rabies is a viral disease transmitted primarily through bites and exposure to saliva or spinal fluid from an infected animal. It infects the nervous system of mammals, making the infected animal unusually aggressive. Vaccines are completely effective in humans, but rabies is fatal if left untreated.

A rabid fox also attacked a Mallett Drive resident in Topsham on April 4. It was the fourth fox attack in Topsham in two weeks. Police investigated a fox attack on a person on March 22 at the Topsham Fairgrounds. That fox was killed by police, but not tested because the person involved was not injured.

There were other fox attacks on dogs around Winter and Summer streets later that same week. Police were unable to locate that fox.

Topsham residents were asked to contact police at (207) 725-4337 if they or their pets come into contact with a wild animal acting strangely and to make sure they keep their animals’ rabies vaccinations up to date.

Gilliam said Saturday that residents should be diligent when on walks and keep their pets leashed.
Gilliam also cautioned residents about shooting at wild animals within neighborhoods due to safety concerns.

The southern Midcoast region saw its first rabid fox encounter of 2021 in January when a fox tried to bite two children in their West Point Road backyard in Phippsburg before it was killed.

Incidents of rabid animals attacking people and pets in the region rose sharply in 2018, when there were nine attacks in Brunswick.

No animals have tested positive for rabies in Brunswick this year according to the Maine CDC, which hasn’t updated rabies data since March 31. However, a woman in Brunswick was attacked by a fox on March 26 before the animal was killed with the help of neighbors. That fox was not tested.

Bath saw a rabies surge in 2019 and early 2020, with 18 people and pets attacked by rabid animals.

while not in Maine [a related story]('https://www.yahoo.com/huffpost/bobcat-attack-viral-video-210344308.html') with video at the link

Although it would not have had any impact on "Head of Tide", I had hoped that they would have taken down the dam on "my river" to help the migratory fish like alewives, eels and, dare I say, salmon, but no, the "locals" insisted on keeping it in for ye olde swimming hole. Regardless this new fish ladder sure beats the old one, which was often supplemented by a bucket brigade of folks transporting alewives from below to above the dam...

[HEADING=2]Bristol Mills fish ladder opens[/HEADING]
The fish ladder is designed to help alewives and other species travel upriver to spawn in lakes and ponds

BRISTOL, Maine — After ten years of meetings, plans, fundraising, and finally, construction, people in Bristol had something to cheer about on Sunday.

With the gate opened, the Pemaquid River began to flow through the town’s [new fish ladder]('https://www.newscentermaine.com/article/life/animals/while-others-worry-about-politics-and-pandemic-bristol-builds-future-of-fish/97-58c3a05f-588a-43ad-abb8-62e342faae86'), designed to help alewives and other species get more easily upriver to spawn in lakes and ponds.

Chad Hanna, the town first selectman was ready to get the water flowing.

"Just going to say this has been, to this point a great community effort. Just too many people to thank, too much hard work this afternoon. So, we're going to get right to it," Hanna said.

Biologists say they believe the new ladder will allow a lot more fish to get past the dam, and eventually, there may be enough to allow some to be harvested for lobster bait.

The first phase of the project cost about $500,000, all of it from donations and town taxpayers.

Credit: NCM

The second phase will start this fall when the exposed parts of the ladder will be capped with stone, and a footbridge built to safely cross over the dam.

The town is planning to build a park around the fish ladder once the stonework is complete.

Here's a video: [[SIZE=7]Bristol Mills Fish Ladder[/SIZE]]('https://www.newscentermaine.com/video/life/animals/bristol-mills-fish-ladder-opens/97-1d553ecc-a783-486e-a8bb-d9217d350afd?jwsource=cl')

I like it but i was only joking when i said "i will probably be an Old man when they get it finished". :giggle: