Join us as we celebrate Habitat Month and see how NOAA works to support healthy habitat, which provides numerous benefits to our communities and our economy.

NOAA works to protect and restore marine and coastal habitat to sustain fisheries, recover protected species, and maintain resilient coastal ecosystems and communities.

Restoring oyster reefs in the Chesapeake Bay supports not only the bay ecosystem but also the economy. Oysters filter excess nutrients from the water and build reefs that provide important habitat for other species—including rockfish, supporting a popular recreational fishery, and blue crabs, boosting an important commercial fishery.

Oysters are terrific multitaskers. We recently sat down with an oyster on a restored reef in the Chesapeake Bay to learn about its many roles. ;)

NOAA Fisheries rejected a petition to ban import of seafood from New Zealand caught using set nets or trawls that result in the injury or mortality of Māui dolphins in excess of U.S. limits. NOAA Fisheries notes that the government of New Zealand is implementing their own regulatory program, comparable to that of the United States, in order to reduce Māui dolphin bycatch.

The Northwest Fisheries Science Center is adopting special methods to make the most of the often tiny biological samples that researchers are able to collect from wild animals swimming in the ocean—like Southern Resident killer whales. Molecular genetic techniques allow scientists to identify individual whales by their DNA and search for potential causes of disease.

A vintner in Northern California is upgrading a concrete fish barrier to return native salmon and steelhead to valuable spawning habitat that has been blocked for nearly a century. A Safe Harbor agreement negotiated with NOAA Fisheries provides regulatory assurance to the landowner should endangered species return to the property.

During this summer’s survey of Gulf of Mexico Bryde’s whales, scientists are turning to new technologies to study the rare animals in the wild.  With the proper permits, NOAA-certified pilots deployed unmanned aerial systems (or drones) to gather high-resolution overhead images of the whales. These images can provide vital clues about the whales’ condition.

The Mississippi Trustees of the Deepwater Horizon Natural Resource Damage Assessment released a draft supplemental restoration plan for Grand Bay Land Acquisition and Habitat Management. Please submit your comments on this plan by July 31.

NOAA Fisheries announced a final rule for recreational Gulf of Maine/Georges Bank cod and haddock in fishing year 2019. The new rule will open the Gulf of Maine cod season, increase the Gulf of Maine haddock possession limits, and reduce the Georges Bank cod minimum size.

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council will hold four public hearings in August and September to gather public input on the Draft Atlantic Surfclam and Ocean Quahog Excessive Shares Amendment. Written comments will be accepted through September 14.

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council will hold four public hearings in August and September to gather public input on the Draft Atlantic Surfclam and Ocean Quahog Excessive Shares Amendment. Written comments will be accepted through September 14.