Guest columnist Tom Looney recently attended a celebration of oysters in New York, noting North Carolina’s absence despite being ideally positioned to compete in the growing shellfish aquaculture market.
Commentary
Sam’s Field Notes: Baby Bald Eagles
Our naturalist Sam Bland recently spent a day in a kayak near Oriental, watching as young bald eagles learned to spread their wings and fly.
Commentary: Collective Amnesia on Bag Ban
While some folks may not recall, business owners with much at stake in the Outer Banks’ environmental health remember why the plastic bag ban was enacted, as columnist Jared Lloyd reminds us.
Sam’s Field Notes: Diversity of Carolina Crabs
A crabby disposition may not be so great, but crab diversity on the North Carolina coast, which is home to a large number of different crustaceans, is a positive sign.
Guest Column: A River Brings Folks Together
A recent event held to celebrate and inform on efforts to protect and restore the Cape Fear River, the ninth annual StriperFest brought together people of different backgrounds and political affiliations.
Sam’s Field Notes: The Polar Bear Connection
The effects of global warming are especially visible in the land of polar bears, as columnist Sam Bland recently witnessed, but how will the forces now affecting the arctic eventually change life on the North Carolina coast?
Sam’s Field Notes: The Monarch Migration
Monarch, the “king of butterflies,” have embarked on their marathon fall migration to Mexico, arriving just in time for the Day of the Dead, where they are regarded as the souls of the departed returning to earth.
Guest Column: Cypress Trees as Sentinels
Marcelo Ardón of N.C. State says cypress trees can serve as sentinels of North Carolina’s coastal sounds, and the public can help in discovering what these trees can tell us about the effects of sea-level rise and other changes.
Sam’s Field Notes: Dog-Day Cicadas
The mating calls of dog-day cicadas are one of nature’s familiar sounds of summer that, when they go silent, signal the changing of the seasons.
Editor’s Desk: One Story Ends, Another Begins
Mark Hibbs takes over as editor of Coastal Review Online as our founding editor, Frank Tursi, prepares to retire after almost four decades in journalism.
Sam’s Field Notes: Banding Baby Pelicans
Our naturalist, Sam Bland, takes you to New Dump Island in Core Sound on an expedition to band baby brown pelicans.
Guest Column: Costly Catfish Trade Barrier
North Carolina seafood dealer Justin Conrad says a federal program created under the guise of improving food safety is nothing more than a trade barrier to imported catfish, one that also puts the state’s agriculture-export business at risk.
Guest Column: Seismic Tests Won’t Harm Fish
The president of the only trade group for companies and people involved in seismic testing for oil and natural gas says there’s no evidence that the tests harm fish as some environmental groups now claim.
Sam’s Field Notes: Painted Buntings
Birdwatchers on the N.C. coast love this time of year because it brings the arrival of one of their favorites, the strikingly colorful painted bunting,
Sam’s Field Notes: The Northern Harrier
The northern harrier, also known as marsh hawk or gray ghost, is a distinctive coastal bird with a stealthy hunting style and, like the fighter jet that shares its name, an ability to hover and perform vertical takeoffs and landings.
Commentary: Many Davids Beat Goliath
Titan was a “Goliath,” toppled by ordinary people who waged an extraordinary campaign to protect their quality of life and environment, writes Todd Miller.
