Local researchers are keeping a close watch on a parasite that has infected and decimated New York's bay scallop population.

As the Vineyard boys hockey team fired pucks at an empty net, a film production crew from the National Hockey League lurked behind the glass, their cameras stretching over the boards.

The Vineyard boys and girls high school hockey teams began the winter sports season last weekend with a flurry of scrimmages against teams from all over New England.

On a blustery November day, in choppy waters somewhere off the western shore of the Island, Capt. Otto Osmers winched in his first conch pot of the day. At its peak in 2011, 1.4 million pounds of conch were harvested in Dukes County, with a monetary value of over $3 million.

The Vineyard boys soccer team fell 3-2 in an overtime heartbreaker against Dover-Sherborn on the road Wednesday, ending their season in the second round of the playoffs.