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All Conched Out?By Reneé Rades | NIE Educational Consultant You may not be familiar with the Queen conch (the word is pronounced "konk," not "konch," by the way). Conchs are mollusks (think giant snails – though not like Gary from SpongeBob Squarepants) that live in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Florida and throughout the Caribbean. Beachgoers pick up empty conch shells to listen for sounds of the ocean, while artists and craftsmen use them to make musical trumpets, jewelry, and more. The meat from the Queen conch makes appearances on dinner tables in Florida and the Caribbean, in such delicacies as conch fritters or conch chowder. Conch meat tastes similar to clam. The popularity of conchs is widespread and spans centuries in their native waters. However, recent articles in The Daytona Beach News-Journal show that this popularity may also lead to its demise. Why is this so? Check out this news article that appeared in The Daytona Beach News-Journal to find out.
As more Americans crave conch, their numbers are rapidly being depleted. Fishers must search farther and farther off Florida's coasts to catch a batch. In many cases, the conchs are taken younger than ever- many of them are not mature enough to mate and replenish their numbers. Because they're younger, they're also smaller, which means that more conchs must be caught in order to obtain a useable amount of meat. With a diminished population of Queen conchs in Florida, conch aficionados have turned to farther away places to feed their appetites. Conch harvesting has taken fishers to the Bahamas and as far south as Columbia. Most of the conchs served in Florida today are imported from the Caribbean. While exporting conch is currently beneficial to the economies of many Caribbean countries, this action poses a bigger threat down the line, especially since the Queen conch has long been a dietary staple of the region. An organization called the International Queen Conch Initiative was formed in 1996 to help manage the conch population and protect it from being overfished. In addition to that initiative, researchers at the Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute, in Fort Pierce, Florida are working on ways to breed captive Queen conch specimens. While there has yet to be a successful release of a captive-bred conch into the ocean, it is possible that we may someday be able to use aquaculture to raise conch for human consumption. Many feel that the conch population is washed out, but that is not necessarily the case. There are ways you can help. If your family buys conch products, urge your folks to make sure that they buy those that are from farm-raised conch or were taken where it is legal to harvest conch. You can also become involved by donating your time and resources to organizations that work to preserve the conch population. Most importantly, you can lead by example and use all of our natural resources wisely, so that other animals and plants may not have to face the same fate as the Queen conch. Try these interesting activities using The Daytona Beach News-Journal:1. Search The News-Journal and newspapers from the Caribbean for articles about the Queen conch. Use the International newspapers link at www.nieworld.com to find online editions of the international newspapers. How do the newspapers cover this topic? What are the differences? How can you account for the same issue being covered differently by different newspapers? Present your findings to the class in a debate, where half the class presents the views of the Caribbean region, while the other side represents the Floridians. Try to work together to create a solution that helps both sides. SS.A.6.3, SS.B.2.3
2. The Queen conch isn't the only animal protected from over-hunting in Florida. Look in The News-Journal for hunters and fishers presenting their catches. What animals have size limits and seasonal hunting restrictions in your area? Debate the pros and cons of having established hunting seasons and catch limits. SC.D.2.3, SC.G.2.3 3. Use the newspaper and/or the Internet to search for Caribbean-inspired recipes. Choose one and calculate how much of the recipe you would have to make to serve your entire class. As a class, you may even have a Caribbean food-tasting party. MA.B.4.3 4. Editorials in the Ideas section of The News-Journal typically follow a straightforward format. They often introduce a problem, state what has been done about it, and offer suggestions to help improve the situation. Find an editorial that you feel is well-written, and write a similar one on how you feel about the Queen conch situation. Share your editorial with the class, and don't forget to proofread it first! You may even want to submit it to The News-Journal's NIE office, for possible publication on www.nieworld.com. LA.B.1.3, LA.B.2.3, LA.D.2.3 5. Study the dot-to-dot activity found each week on The Mini Page, then make a line drawing of a conch shell, add numbers and erase the lines between the numbers to create your own follow the dot puzzle. Have younger friends or family members try their hands at following the dots on your creation. VA.A.1.1, VA.B.1.1, VA.E.1.1. Check out these links to learn more:The Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute is dedicated to studying the ocean and how humans interact with it. It specializes in biomedical research as well as in aquaculture and ocean engineering. Explore the research being done and even take a virtual tour of the HBOI facilities. You can also learn about how science teachers are getting their students involved in conch research. Enchanted Learning offers a printout and resources for learning about the queen conch. This is a coloring page about the anatomy and population of the queen conch. Learn about the countries who participate in the International Queen Conch Initiative, how it got started, and conservation efforts that are in effect. Learn about how one "seasick marine scientist" came to raise queen conch for restaurants in the United States, helping out the environment and fishers. Search for the queen conch and other endangered species and learn about how they came to be that way. You can also track the population of the species over time. The Food Reference Website has tons of recipes, as well as how certain foods fit into society. Learn how to make a conch shell trumpet, and how they have been used in the West Indies for centuries. Published July 14, 2004 |
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