The Maine Sea Grant Program at the University of Maine has received $2 million in funding. 

$1.4 million of the funding comes from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), awarded to support research and outreach activities of the NOAA Sea Grant-funded American Lobster Initiative. Another $600,000 has been provided in second-year support for four 2025-26 American lobster research awards.

With this new four-year NOAA award, Maine Sea Grant and its regional partners will support collaborative research to address complex challenges facing the American lobster fishery, according to UMaine News, in a news release. The initiative will also synthesize research findings so they are accessible and actionable for fishermen, policymakers and the public, and support place-based technical assistance within the Gulf of Maine, Georges Bank and Southern New England region.  

The American lobster (Homarus americanus) is among the nation’s most valuable fisheries, with approximately 113 million pounds landed in 2024, valued at $715 million. The industry supports thousands of Maine families across the fishing and seafood supply chain and faces growing uncertainty driven by environmental and market change.

"This underscores the need for collaborative research to understand how lobsters are responding to changing conditions and how best to sustain the fishery," said UMaine, in the release.

Since 2019, Sea Grant’s NOAA-funded American Lobster Initiative (ALI) has worked to close critical knowledge gaps about this iconic species, strengthening the fishery’s resilience to biological, economic and social impacts of ecosystem change. The program has funded 40 projects to date and supports a national research competition alongside a regionally coordinated extension network to ensure that communities across the region benefit from these investments.  

“This new federal investment in lobster research is terrific news for Maine’s fishermen, marine researchers, and coastal communities, and it underscores why I advocated so strongly for the restoration of Maine Sea Grant’s funding last year.," said U.S. Sen. Susan Collins. "The research efforts led by Maine Sea Grant help inform policy makers and support our working waterfronts, strengthening Maine’s blue economy and helping to ensure that our state’s fisheries remain sustainable and competitive for generations to come."

With the new $1.4 million award, Maine Sea Grant will begin to administer the initiative’s competitive research competition, which was previously administered by the NOAA National Sea Grant Program.

“Maine Sea Grant is honored to build on our strong partnerships and tradition of research and extension excellence by expanding our role to include research administration," said Gayle Zydlewski, director of the Maine Sea Grant College Program at UMaine. "By leveraging our deep local connections and extensive partnerships, we will ensure this investment directly addresses the most pressing needs for the management and sustainability of the lobster fishery.” 

The new American Lobster Initiative research competition, to be announced this spring, will fund collaborative projects focused on priority research needs while strengthening partnerships between scientists and the lobster industry. Maine Sea Grant will continue coordinating extension programming and science communication in partnership with Northeast Sea Grant programs, the lobster industry, and state and federal marine resource agencies across the region. 

"The American Lobster Initiative’s emphasis on collaborative research comes at an important moment for Maine’s lobster industry and will help rebuild trust and strengthen relationships between industry, management, and research partners,” said Patrice McCarron, executive director of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association.

A portion of the $1.4 million award will support the New Hampshire Sea Grant program and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Sea Grant program, who will work with Maine Sea Grant to expand regional support and community engagement around the new research competition, while also providing extension and communications leadership for the initiative.

In addition to the $1.4 million award, NOAA has awarded $600,000 in second-year funding for four previously announced American Lobster Initiative research projects led by UMaine, the Maine Department of Marine Resources and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. These projects are advancing understanding of lobster reproduction and growth in changing environmental conditions and are examining the potential effects of offshore energy installations on seafloor habitats used by lobsters.

"These funds will enable my project team and me to continue to grow our dataset and fill in important data gaps around lobster growth allowing us to understand better how a changing environment may affect how lobsters grow and reproduce," Amalia Harrington, assistant professor of marine biology at UMaine.

To date, the American Lobster Initiative has strengthened collaboration among researchers, managers and industry partners, advancing understanding of lobster biology, population dynamics, and related socioeconomic and management issues, according to UMaine.

"Findings from the initiative are helping inform fishing practices and management decisions, support planning efforts, and protect fishing livelihoods and local seafood economies," said the release.

Project partners developed a story map to share outcomes from the initiative, which will continue to be updated as additional findings become available. The collaborative projects advance UMaine’s mission as the state’s flagship, learner-centered R1 research institution. Industry partners, undergraduate and graduate students, resource managers and researchers will work together to co-develop solutions to challenges facing Maine’s coastal economy. The effort builds on decades of support for and engagement with the American lobster industry by the Maine Sea Grant Program, UMaine and regional partners.

For additional information, contact Maine Sea Grant Lobster Research and Extension Coordinator Michelle Brown.

About the University of Maine

As Maine’s only public research university and a Carnegie R1 top-tier research institution, the University of Maine advances learning and discovery through excellence and innovation. Founded in 1865 in Orono, UMaine is the state’s land, sea and space grant university with a regional campus at the University of Maine at Machias. Our students come from all over the world and work with faculty conducting fieldwork around the globe — from the North Atlantic to the Antarctic. Located on Marsh Island in the homeland of the Penobscot Nation with UMaine Machias located in the homeland of the Passamaquoddy Nation, UMaine’s statewide mission is to foster an environment that creates tomorrow’s leaders. As the state’s flagship institution, UMaine offers nearly 200 degree programs through which students can earn bachelor’s, master’s, professional master’s and doctoral degrees as well as graduate certificates. For more information about UMaine and UMaine Machias, visit umaine.edu/about/quick-facts/ and machias.edu/about-umm/umm-facts/.