Coonamessett Farm Foundation’s (CFF) mission is to conduct scientific research and educational projects that support sustainable fisheries operations, local small-scale agriculture and aquaculture, and renewable energy sources for the benefits of the public.
Twelve Years of Cold-Stunned Sea Turtles on Cape Cod
New collaborative publication with NOAA Fisheries, Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary, and MA Division of Marine Fisheries
A new paper co-authored by CFF's Samir Patel is out now in Marine Biology, digging into how immature sea turtles feed in the waters off Cape Cod and where they sit in the local food web.
The work draws on twelve years of sampling. Each fall, immature loggerhead, Kemp's ridley, and green sea turtles strand on Cape Cod beaches after cold stunning. About 25% of these cold-stunned sea turtles are deceased when they strand, and the team conducts necropsies (animal autopsies) on these carcasses. All work involving these sea turtles is conducted under U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service permit ES60415D. The team collected blood and muscle tissue,…
September 29, 2026
CFF Presents at the Fourth World Seabird Conference
Sharing results from Reducing Seabird Bycatch project
September 23, 2026
Final Report Now Available
The Davis Bank East Benthic Survey
September 15, 2026
CFF and Acbotics Research Field-Test New Ocean-Monitoring Tools off Cape Cod
A two-day test of acoustic, sensor, and eDNA tools
September 3, 2026
Our feature film, Sustaining Sea Scallops, is now available online! Watch the full documentary to learn how the collaborative research model embraced by CFF helped a flagging scallop fishing industry rebound.
Your donation powers hands-on research, community-driven education, and sustainable solutions across land and sea. Every gift, no matter the size, helps us protect ecosystems, inform policy, and support a more resilient future for people and the planet.
