Scientists say the highest water temperatures ever in the Gulf of Maine were recorded last year.
The Gulf extends from Cape Cod to Canada, and is warming partly due to massive ice-melt from the Arctic. That pulse of cold, fresh water is changing the course of long-established ocean currents, and allowing relatively warm Gulf Stream waters to push closer to New England's coast. Ten years ago, newly-abundant squid may have played a decisive role in the collapse of a local population of cold-water shrimp, called Maine shrimp, that likely were already stressed by warming temperatures.
What's the latest species fishermen are seeing come around more often, even in winter? What the South knows as Chesapeake blue crab. "Whether it's lobster or groundfish… herring management. If a progressive, climate-ready strategy can be adopted in the Gulf of Maine, I think that bodes well for applying it elsewhere," he says.