‘Reeling it in’ at the Boothbay Sea and Science Center
Last week was fishing week at BSSC! The week was filled with fun, learning, and of course fishing! We kicked off the week with a beautiful Monday, during which the campers learned about the different commercial fishing industries in Maine. While they learned they created fish prints, caught invasive green crabs, and bottom fished off our 18ft lobster boat for fish like pollock, cunner, and cod.
On Tuesday, the campers continued the wonderful week by learning about some different fishing techniques. They learned how to use a seine net and a cast net. They caught some very interesting things in the nets, but nothing tops a herring that was caught in a seine net. The herring was infected with sea lice which is a harmful parasite that has been plaguing fish on the east coast. Luckily for this herring the campers and instructors were able to rid the herring of its parasites and release it back into the bay parasite free. To top the day off the campers got to spend a second day fishing the bountiful waters of Linekin Bay from our lobster boat.
On Wednesday, the campers spent the day learning about Maine’s most important fishing industry, lobstering! This day consisted of lobster themed crafts, painting, and trips out on the lobster boat to watch executive director and lobster woman Pauline Dion pull traps and catch lobsters!
Thursday was rainy and windy, as a result we spent most of the day inside but that didn’t stop the learning or the fun! In the morning the campers built their own crab traps out of chicken wire, zip ties and some other miscellaneous items, in the afternoon we watched a movie and did some crafts.
On Friday, the campers tested their crab traps on the dock, many of the traps were successful! Catching multiple crabs in just 20 minutes. After we finished crabbing, we played a massive fisheries game in which campers had to follow fisheries laws and manage equipment all while trying to turn a profit. The week was perfectly wrapped up as always by our lunchtime cookout, which was a great way to end another great week here at BSSC!
