The Long Island Sound Lobster Initiative was formed after a July 2000 Congressional allocation of $6.6 million in federal funds to NOAA to research the scientific and economic impacts of the die off. Congress directed that approximately $3.5 million of those federal funds be dedicated for research investigating potential causes. New York and Connecticut Sea Grant both received $165,000 each in federal funding to facilitate communication of the research findings to lobster fishers, resource managers, and the public.

Lobster Final Report (pdf)
"Responding to a Resource Disaster: American Lobsters in Long Island Sound, 1999 - 2004"
Summary of lobster die-off studies unravels the mystery for the public (May '06)

Lobster Health News
A newsletter highlighting LI Sound lobster research progress

• Fall '03 (pdf) (12 pages)
  
  Supplement: Long Island Sound Lobster Life Cycle & Habitat. Poster. Connecticut and New York Sea Grants, supported by the Long Island Sound Lobster Research Initiative. 2004. 2 pp. (pdf)
  
  
• Spring '03 (pdf) (8 pages)

General Research Summaries

• An Overview (pdf)
  (General summaries for all 19 projects)
  
  
• Research Summary Publication (Fall 2005)
  
  Contact NY Sea Grant (631) 727-3910 or CT Sea Grant (860) 405-9107 to obtain copies of this special journal issue ($35).
  
  Anthony Calabrese, Nancy Balcom, Antoinette Clemetson (guest editors). October 2005. Contributions to the Long Island Sound Lobster Research Initiative. J. Shellfish Research. 24:3 687-875.
  
  A compilation of research that investigates Homarus americanus health, with emphasis on the factors that affect populations in Long Island Sound. The majority of the research that is presented was conducted as part of a regional collaboration between NOAA Fisheries, NOAA Sea Grant National Office, CT Department of Environmental Protection, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, CT Sea Grant, NY Sea Grant, and EPA.

Symposia Materials

4th Annual Long Island Sound Lobster Health Symposium (October 2004)

Research Summaries

• Identifying the Driving For Forces Behind the 1999 Lobster Mortality Event - Fitting Together the Pieces of the Puzzle (pdf)
  
  
• Immune & Endocrine Compromise in American Lobsters / Disease in American Lobsters (pdf)
  
  
• Long- Term Population Trends in American Lobster in Long Island Sound / The Role of Physical & Chemical Conditions in Lobster Mortality in LIS (pdf)
  
  
• Modeling Pesticide Concentrations in Long Island Sound / Effects of Pesticides in American Lobsters (pdf)

Third Annual Long Island Sound Lobster Health Symposium (March 2003)

• Summary of Presentations (pdf) (16 pages)
  
  
• Proceedings: Full (pdf) (75+ pages)
  
  
• Proceedings: Separate Sections
  (for faster downloading)

Introduction (pdf)
(includes meeting agenda & sponsors info., table of contents for proceedings)

LIS Lobster Initiative Steering Committee (pdf)

LIS Lobster Initiative Researchers (pdf)

Individual Research Summaries

Status of LI Sound Lobster Resource (pdf)

Environmental Stresors (pdf)

Physiological Responses to Stress (pdf)

Pesticides (pdf)

Parasites and Disease (pdf)

Second Annual Long Island Sound Lobster Health Symposium (November 2001)

• Background Materials (pdf)
  
  
• Research Summaries (pdf)

First Long Island Sound Lobster Health Symposium, April 2000

• Summary of Research Priorities
  Transcript: April 18, 2000 (pdf)

Sea Grant's Lobster Fact Sheets (NYSG)

LIS Lobster Initiative: Research Summaries

• Calcinosis in Lobsters, January 2003 (pdf)
  Preliminary results link the latest lobster mortalities to prevailing high bottom water temperatures in LI Sound
  
  
• Marine Disease Pathology & Research Consortium Lab, January 2003 (pdf)
  New diagnostic service for marine disease outbreaks and fish kills at Stony Brook University
  
  
• Immunology and Endocrinology, July 2001 (pdf)
  
  
• Shell Disease and Paramoeba, July 2001 (pdf)
  
  
• Pesticides, July 2001 (pdf)
  
  
• Physical and Chemical Environment, July 2001 (pdf)
  
  
• LIS Lobster Disaster Response, July 2001 (pdf)
  
  
• LIS Lobster Research Funding, July 2001 (pdf)

LIS Lobster Initiative: An Introduction

• General Information and Contacts, February 2001 (pdf)
  
  
• The Extension Component, February 2001 (pdf)
  
  
• Timeline, February 2001 (pdf)
  
  
• LIS Shell Disease & Mortality: Research Priorities, February 2001 (pdf)
  
  
• LIS Shell Disease & Mortality: Research Response, February 2001 (pdf)
  
  
• Steering Committee for Research & Disease, February 2001 (pdf)

Sea Grant's Lobster Fact Sheets (CTSG)

• What's Happening to Lobsters in LIS?, April 2000 (pdf)
  
  
• Lobster Health Frequently Asked Questions, April 2000 (pdf)