Good news for the District’s fishermen, and better news for its fish: Tumor rates among fish in the city’s waterways have dropped substantially.
(It’s not a tumor).
According to a survey just released by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 42 percent of female brown bullhead catfish in the Anacostia River and 14 percent of males had liver tumors during the 2009-2011 study period. That may not sound like cause for celebration, but those figures are down sharply from an earlier survey conducted between 1996 and 2001, when 78 percent of females and 43 percent of males were estimated to have tumors—the highest reported rates in the country (though only a handful of waterways had data).
The problem with assessing progress against an awful baseline is that you have to hold in your head both the awful current condition, and the fact that it’s slightly less awful than it was before.
Bad News Fish Fans: A recent study of D.C. area restaurants and grocery stores revealed 87 percent of the establishments were misrepresenting one or more of their seafood offerings. The study was carried out at 674 retail locations, pretty much eliminating any chance of a “poor sample size” counter-argument, and has us wondering how we can teach an iPhone to sample our fish before we buy/eat it. source
One more reason not to go diving in Arctic waters.
The Lions Mane Jellyfish is the largest jellyfish in the world. They have been swimming in arctic waters since before dinosaurs (over 650 million years ago) and are among some of the oldest surviving species in the world.
Absolutely wow.
DC this morning had a light odor of rotting fish, from Georgetown all the way down to the Maine Avenue Waterfront. And not the good kind (Thai or Vietnamese fish sauce, like nam pla), but the industrial-strength fish emulsion fertilizer kind. I suppose the only different between those two things is the salt, but that salt makes such a difference.
Anyway, I’m ready for this 90-degree heat to be done. Can we take a break?
Big fish lurk beneath the Key Bridge…
Prince Of Petworth » It Was “This Big” – I Swear!
Thought you might like to see what lurks beneath the waters of the Potomac in D.C. I was fishing Saturday afternoon with my friend, Campbell Moore, off the shore in Georgetown using chicken gizzards for bait (bought at the Petworth Safeway). My friend hooked this giant catfish, and a 25-minute back and forth battle ensued. It was pretty tense, as we knew that the line could snap at any minute. We ended up with quite an audience, as several canoes, kayakers and paddle boarders stopped to watch the fight.
When the fish finally tired out and allowed itself to be pulled near the riverbank, I waded out, stuck my hands its mouth and hoisted it up onto the shore. We took a few pictures of the fish before releasing it back into the river, and it swam off as if nothing had happened (large catfish from the Potomac are not safe to eat because of accumulated pollutants). We estimated it measured close to 3.5 feet and weighed 30-35 pounds. For scale, my friend is about 6’1″.
And they can get much bigger than this… A guy caught an 80-pound catfish in the Potomac in Prince George’s County in February. Anyway, just a reminder that we share the city with some surprising creatures. While we were fishing, and with the Key Bridge as a backdrop, we also saw a bald eagle grab a large fish and fly off toward the trees on the Virginia side. (via )
Grilled up some jerk salmon tonight, improvising a jerk seasoning with healthy amounts of allspice, cayenne, and smaller amounts of garlic powder, ginger, thyme, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, and a diced shallot. Lightly coated the salmon in olive oil, dredged it in the rub, and then grilled it slow and low.
For those seeking sustainability.
New England Aquarium’s approved fish list
- There’s very little consensus about sustainable seafood. Here is a partial list that gets the New England Aquarium’s seal of approval.
Last night’s dinner with Pat and Bea: Liz knocked it out of the park, unsurprisingly.
-soy/maple glazed cedar plank salmon
-Brussels sprouts with walnuts and something else delicious
-roasted carrots
-grilled asparagus
(recipes to follow, if I can track them down)
Phenomenal dinner at Paul and Melanie’s—headlined by a spice rubbed cedar plank salmon, with grilled veggies and caprese.
Graysby, Epinephelus cruentatus, Key Biscayne, FL, USA
(photo: Evan D’Alessandro, MBF)
There are some wacky fish in the sea.
(via bryanboova)
A simple supper that was great as we sat on our front stoop and welcomed trick-or-treaters on Monday night. Grilled salmon with lime-butter sauce, steamed asparagus and brown rice. Tasty and, as we New England natives say, “wicked healthy*.”
(*As long as you go easy on the butter).
boston: FISHY BUSINESS
Fish supply chain open to abuses
- The rampant mislabeling of fish that consumers buy can be largely traced to this: the lack of anything like the regulations imposed on meat suppliers.
(Second of two parts.)
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