After twelve days, F/V Patience returns to port in New Bedford, MA, USA on Apr. 27, 2025. Deckhand Elias catches and releases scallop baskets as another crew member in the fish-hold below loads bags of scallops or ice. He sharply focuses on the swinging bags and directs them into the building where they’re weighed and packaged for the same-day auction. It’s physically demanding and a dangerous job.

R/V Buckey’s Captain Eddie, Gulf of Maine, MA, USA, has a responsibility for all that happens on the ship on Apr 1, 2025. His main job is in the wheelhouse where he controls all navigation, finds the scallop locations, pays attention to compliance with government regulations, and keeps the crew safe. He drinks a lot of Dr Pepper and Starbucks. New Bedford, MA.

Captain Eddie, Gulf of Maine, observes the waters.

Scallop boat R/V Buckeye, New Bedford, MA, USA. Scallops are offloaded after getting their quota at Stellwagen Bank in the Gulf of Maine. After referring to the scientists’ research, the US government mandates the quota for scallop harvesting.

Scallop boat F/V Patience returns to port in New Bedford, MA, USA after 12 days when they got their quota on APR 27, 2025. Captain Chris, from Maine, USA has his children help clean the boat. His six children are under the age of eight years, and his wife home schools all six. Son Chris Jr wears a Trump MAGA cap as he scrubs the deck.

Captain and son aboard F/V Patience, New Bedford, MA, USA. Most fishermen are Trump supporters.

Timmy, part fisherman and part counselor at a drug rehab center, fishes for clams in Green Pond, East Falmouth, MA, USA, on Mar 11, 2025. Green Pond, a brackish body of water, leads to the Atlantic Ocean. The warming water and nitrogen content affect the shellfish catch in both size and number.

Town of Falmouth, MA, USA, contracts with Barnstable House of Correction for the inmates to help with oyster farming. Oysters help filter water's high nitrogen count, and the inmates learn about the ocean as well as going outside. Working in the water, although physically draining, is a favorite volunteer option.

Quahogger and part-time physical therapist, David, rakes rocks, a few quahogs, and broken sunglasses in Falmouth Harbor, Falmouth, MA, USA. His catch gets smaller as the waters warm.

Quahogger Rich prepares to fish for quahogs in Falmouth Harbor, MA, USA. He believes in conspiracy theories about cloud seeding and jet stream trails and supports Donald Trump.

Crew of F/V Patience unloads scallops after 12 days at sea.

Shucking scallops and disposing the unusable parts. Gulf of Maine, USA. The ability to shuck efficiently is a difficult and valuable skill.

A dreary night in the Gulf of Maine, USA

Captain Eddie peers out to sea. Gulf of Maine, USA.

Herring run in Harwich, MA, USA where the herrings are counted as they go up stream from the ocean to spawn and then return to the sea. The numbers are declining and are indicative of our changing climate.

Herring run water rolls in Harwich, MA, USA

In the rain and deep fog, after 12 days at sea, the scallop boat RV Buckeye, New Bedford, MA, USA, returns at 4:00 am to offload from Stellwagen Bank on Mar 21, 2025.

Welding scallop dredging machinery, New Bedford, MA, USA

USA flag sticker in New Bedford, MA, USA adds to the inside décor of a welding building where scallop boat dredges are modified and repaired. Scallops account for 80% of all seafood landed on the docks in 2024 according to NOAA National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration NOAA. Currently, New Bedford is home to the largest scallop industry in the USA and is the scallop capital of the world. As future USA is uncertain, the flag peels and fades.