Delaware Sea Grant and the CSHEL Lab are seeking volunteers to participate in a 3-day Derelict Crab Pot Round-Up in Indian River this winter. We will stage our activities at Holts Landing State Park, and work from approximately 8 am – 2 pm on the three best weather days between January 19 and 22, 2021. February 1 – 5, 2021 is designated to accommodate any remaining Round-Up days in the event of cancellations due to inclement weather.

We are seeking volunteers that are able to bring and crew their personal boats to aid in ghost crab pot removal and limited data collection. We will provide gear such as grappling hooks, gloves, and clip-boards.

In order to adapt to COVID-19, ground crew will be limited to a minimum number of staff. For volunteers that wish to contribute to these efforts but do not have personal boats, there may be additional volunteer opportunities following the removal events, including but not limited to assisting in transporting and/or refurbishing pots for re-use.

Interested parties should contact Kate Fleming, Delaware Sea Grant Coastal Ecology Specialist, at kfleming@udel.edu, or attend our first virtual information session on Thursday, October 29, 2020 7 – 8 pm. Register here: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJMsf-mqqDgoGd1ZPA7AAxBUiBDZNMYCNgKJ

We thank our partners at the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, DE Center for Inland Bays, Delaware Aquaculture Association, and Delaware Mobile Surf Fisherman Club for their much needed support to recruit volunteers and to remove ghost crab pots from Delaware’s Inland Bays!

*Note: Volunteers will not be required to attend all three information sessions.