January: Algae Culture Techniques
Friday. January 18, 2-4 pm • Thursday, January 17, 6-8 pm
This introduction to the lecture series addresses everything you know about algae but were afraid to ask. Learn about the good the bad and the ugly algae species and find out why this critical base of the marine food chain affects shellfish from birth to death.




Learn about the construction and operation of the new SEACAPS continuous algae culture system which is being installed in order to ramp up the production of scallops and other shellfish stocks for the 2005 season. Few facilities in the country have this system and CCE will be one of the first in the Northeast to operate one.

February: Broodstock Conditioning & Spawning
Friday. February 18, 2-4 • Thursday, February 14, 6-8 pm
Ever wonder how shellfish are produced? Find out how bivalve mollusks get ready for spawning and what triggers them. Learn the tricks of the trade, including musical selection, lighting, heating and phenomenal suspensions.




Find out what is necessary to condition and spawn scallops out of season in order to produce early seed in quantity.

March: Larval Culture of Bivalve Species
Friday. March 21, 2-4 • March 20, 6-8 pm
All shellfish have a larval cycle before becoming Spat. This lecture discusses the various routines that larvae perform during the earliest part of their lives. Join the microscopic world of trochophores and veligers as they dare to go the distance to becoming seed.




Learn advanced handling techniques used to maximize survival, growth and health of shellfish larvae. April: Post -Metamorphic Seed Culture Friday. April 15, 2-4

April: Post -Metamorphic Seed Culture
Friday. April 18, 2-4 • Thursday, April 17, 6-8 pm
Just like the caterpillar that changes into the butterfly, shellfish larvae undergo metamorphosis and change into their smallest juvenile Spat. This is usually the last place they will live, give or take a few meters, for the rest of their lives, unless they are cultured. Our shellfish are just getting ready to move all over.




Scallops need special requirements for successful setting. This lecture will cover what has been found to work well in our system in order to move out large numbers of set.

May: Maintaining Shellfish Nursery Systems
Friday. May 16, 2-4 • Thursday, May 15, 6-8 pm
Shellfish nurseries cross between being technically advanced and extremely simple. Learn about Upwellers and Downwellers, Flupsies and Seston Flux. The phase in aquaculture where nature and humans come together to maximize shellfish seed culture.




Scallops have different requirements in the nursery as compared to other shellfish species. They like space (surface area) and they stick to everything. Find out how to maximize these requirements.

June: Configuring and Maintaining the Garden
Friday. June 20, 2-4 pm • Thursday, June 19, 6-8 pm
So now that you can see your shellfish seed, what are you going to do with it? This is where all the fun begins with designing and keeping up with your own personal shellfish garden. Join the SPATsters in collecting information about how best to grow shellfish to adult size.




See if you are ready to grow all three species in the most efficient manner, as well as multi-year class maintenance. Learn how to monitor your stocks in a more thorough manner so you can plot growth over time for all year classes.

July: Field Growout of Hard Clams
Friday. July 18, 2-4 pm • Thursday, July 17, 6-8 pm
Hard clams possibly get their name because they are somewhat hard to grow. This class will concentrate on how to attempt to grow a market sized clam in 3-4 years. Predator exclusion is most critical in the first season and techniques for optimizing growth rate and over winter survival will be discussed.

Monday, Wednesday, Friday Work Sessions
8:30-12:00 Throughout the year. (Coffee break at 10:00)
Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, during the entire year, volunteers come by to help out with all of the various SPAT projects. This includes working in the SPAT Shack, our own shellfish hatchery. This is the perfect place to try out the skills necessary for growing seed shellfish from scratch. The seed nurseries are another component to the shellfish culture activities and require routine maintenance. Learn how to service the land-based and floating upwellers, as well as how to design and build them. Try your hand at the culling machine, which sorts and cleans the seed automatically. There is plenty of interesting activities for everyone. There is never a need to call in advance, the doors are always open during these work sessions. Please however remember to sign in at the front office. All volunteer time is logged in as an additional bonus.



We are also going to be building boats as part of our regular activities. This has turned out to be a very exciting and rewarding activity and it can also provide additional fundraising revenues. We are currently producing a number of 18 foot work skiffs and will most likely add a number of different designs to our fleet. Whether you have experience or not, feel free to come by and lend a hand. "There is nothing-absolutely nothing-half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats". Ratty is right about that but also, building them adds yet another worth to the pleasure

Persons needing special accommodations should contact SPAT Volunteer Office at 631-852-8660 Extension 55 at least two weeks prior to scheduled workshop..