Fish kill on Palm Beach remains under investigation as cleanup continues - Palm Beach Post

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Crews returned to the beach Monday for a second day of cleanup work following a fish kill on Palm Beach that left scores of colorful reef dwellers dead last weekend.

Though many of the jewel-toned fish had disappeared from an area near Root Trail just north of The Breakers, where they had been discovered late last week, the town sent a contractor to the beach to remove those that remained, Town Manager Kirk Blouin said Monday.

"We had crews out there all day Sunday, and we're following up because of the rot and smell," he said. "We look for seabirds. They take care of it. There weren't a lot of them around on Sunday."

Blouin said many of the dead fish could have washed back out to sea following heavy rains over the weekend, while others could have been fed upon by birds or other fish.

More: Amid transparency concerns, Palm Beach will seek to conduct own water tests

State officials investigating source of fish kill

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission continues to investigate what caused the fish kill and will release that information when it becomes available, FWC spokeswoman Carol Lyn Parrish said Monday.

Water samples collected last week are being tested and analyzed for possible contaminants, Parrish said. There is no timeline for when those tests will be completed.

While the fish kill's origins have yet to be identified officially, different theories have circulated.

Anglers and divers reported an upwelling of cold water recently left the reef off Palm Beach in temperatures of between 62 and 67 degrees — enough to kill tropical fish, Lake Worth Waterkeeper Reinaldo Diaz told the Palm Beach Post on Saturday.

In August 2010, a wave of upwellings was blamed for fatally bleaching corals off the coast of central Palm Beach County and killing fish. 

Parrish said heavy rains also can cause fish kills.

"Sometimes it'll be one species of fish that's affected, and sometimes it might be several species of fish," she said. "It really depends on what environmental event led to the fish kill."

Red tide most likely was not a culprit, Blouin said. Karenia brevis, the species that causes most red tides in Florida, has not been observed along the east coast of Florida. The last outbreak of red tide in Palm Beach County was 2018. 

The town issued an alert Saturday afternoon calling the fish kill a "natural occurrence" and telling residents they should not be concerned.

State officials first became aware of the fish kill on Thursday after a report was made to the state's fish kill hotline, Parrish said.

Longtime resident Barbara Meister discovered the fish kill the following day as she walked on the beach near her oceanfront home, and she reported it to FWC officials.

Meister, a conservationist who walks the beach regularly to inspect sea turtle nests, said she was surprised and saddened to see the extent of the fish kill.

"I went into shock," she said. "I've never seen anything like it. I'm a native. I grew up in Miami, and I grew up on the ocean, and I've been on boats. It's crazy. When I saw that, I couldn't believe it."

jwagner@pbdailynews.com

@JRWagner5

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June 29, 2021 at 11:47PM
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‘It smells terrible’: Piles of dead fish wash up along Bayshore Boulevard - WFLA

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TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) – Runners couldn’t ignore the smell of dead fish washing up along Bayshore Boulevard, Tuesday morning.

“It smells terrible,” said Miller Townsend.

“I just saw a ton of dead fish,” Brittany Baker added.

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Video we captured just after 1 a.m. Tuesday shows dozens of fish floating in the bay by the popular roadway.

Footage taken just hours later captured hundreds more washing up against the wall.

“It’s pretty terrible. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that much [fish]. What you see is some bigger stuff and some smaller stuff, it’s a lot,” Townsend described.

As of Tuesday morning, it was unclear whether the fish kill was caused by red tide.

At the time, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s red tide map indicated high concentration of the algae bloom near MacDill Airforce Base.

California bans state travel to Florida, 4 other states

Medium concentrations of the bloom was present off the coast of Hillsborough County, according to the FWC map.

“I go out and paddle board in this, so, I’m very concerned — if I’m putting my body in it and these fish are dying,” Baker said.

8 On Your Side reached out to FWC with questions about red tide testing in the area and possible clean up efforts. An update will be posted when the agency provides a response.

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June 29, 2021 at 11:27PM
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Fishing report: Fish are biting, weather is great, so enjoy some fishing - Ashland Daily Press

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Editor’s note: Following is a report from Rice Lake Tourism, with fishing tips provided by Jordan Marsh of Marsh Outdoors.

As we reach another holiday weekend, it's encouraging to see the fishing is still good and the action has been solid for many anglers. The lakes will be busy this weekend so let's respect one another and all enjoy the lakes and rivers we are so lucky to have in our area. The fish are biting, the weather looks great, so get out there and enjoy some fishing.

The bluegill are completely done with their spawning for the year and a lot of the gills are sitting in or around the edges of the weeds. They are very easy to find and are providing constant action right now. Many of the bigger fish will move deeper soon, so get out there and catch them while the action is still non stop. During the day, cast a bobber and hook tipped with a half a worm on the edges of the weeds, or inside of them if you can find an open pocket. Depth down may vary and sometimes you will have to adjust as well to find the bigger fish. Many times those smaller fish are aggressive and will hit the baits closer to the surface. Get down a little deeper to find the bigger ones. If you are looking for an exciting bite, find a nice calm evening and use a fly rod to catch the fish as they feed on bugs before dark. Casting on top of weed beds and working the floating fly back to the boat is always a great way to catch those fish. You might even run into some crappie sitting on the edge of the weeds as well.

Walleye are starting to do some transitional moving right now which is fun for many anglers as a lot of different tactics are working to catch these fish. Shallow weeds still are holding a fair amount of fish and can be caught running spinners or casting slip bobbers tipped with a leech and waiting for a cruising fish to swim by. The deep water structure is holding a good amount of fish and they can be targeted with a lindy rig, slip bobber, spinners on bottom bouncers, or the traditional jig and live bait. Leeches and nightcrawlers are the go-to bait right now, and be sure to use the most lively leech you can find in the bunch. The walleye have a hard time resisting them. The open water trolling bite is starting to pick up as we have lots of new baitfish in the system. The baitfish will first hide in the weeds and then they make their migration to open water and the walleye are sure to follow them. I like to run shad style baits this time of year when trolling the open water basin.

Good luck fishing and remember, introduce someone new into the outdoors. They will appreciate it for a lifetime.

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C'waam And Koptu: The Fish At The Center Of The Klamath Basin's Water Crisis - Jefferson Public Radio

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Biologist Alex Gonyaw aims his Boston Whaler up the eastern shore of Upper Klamath Lake. He’s showing off what, he says, used to be abundant habitat for juvenile fish in the lake.

“It’s a mosaic of cattails and willows and tules, or bullrushes,” Gonyaw says. “The more hiding places for juvenile creatures the better they generally tend to do.”

At almost 30 miles long, Upper Klamath Lake is the home to several types of fish that live only here. Two of them are called C’waam and Koptu in the Klamath Tribes' traditional language or, in English, the Lost River and shortnose sucker. They have a stubby face and wide lips, and can live to be 50-years-old.

“They’re an endemic species,” he says. “It's only found here, nowhere else in the universe. And due to their sort of near-extinction-level status they are becoming something of a figurehead in the water crisis here.”

Klamath Tribes Senior Fish Biologist Alex Gonyaw boats across Upper Klamath Lake. Gonyaw is working to try to save the endangered C'waam and Koptu, or Lost River and shortnose suckers that live in the lake.

In recent years, the juvenile fish have been dying, causing the overall population to crash. Five years ago, when Gonyaw started working for the tribes, there were about 20,000 shortnose suckers in the lake. Estimates today put them at just 3,400. The Lost River sucker is disappearing at a similar rate.

Exactly why these fish are dying is unclear but biologists believe it’s because of poor water quality and habitat loss that’s impacted by low water in the lake. Those factors make their future grim.

“There's a catastrophic event likely in the next few years,” Gonyaw says.

In this extremely dry year in the Klamath Basin, much of the debate over who gets water depends on these fish. Water flowing out of the lake has been shut off to farmers who rely on the federally managed irrigation system of canals, dams and reservoirs known as the Klamath Project. Even further down the Klamath River, threatened coho salmon are also getting the bare minimum water.

Besides being protected under the Endangered Species Act, the C’waam and Koptu are culturally important to the Klamath Tribes who say they’ve subsisted on the fish since time immemorial.

At a recent rally in Klamath Falls, Tribal Chairman Don Gentry talked about how the Klamath people prayed for the fish to return after hard winters.

“Those fish are so important. We wouldn’t be here likely without those fish that helped us survive,” Gentry said.

The declining numbers of C’waam and Koptu also illustrate a problem with the U.S. government’s treaty. In 1864 the Klamath Tribes gave up around 20 million acres of land, in exchange for the right to hunt and fish on their new reservation. Gentry says those treaty rights don’t mean much if there are no fish to catch.

“What good is a treaty if you don't have the resources?”

The Endangered Species Act is meant to prevent species from going extinct. Gentry says it doesn’t live up to the treaty responsibility of providing harvestable resources.

“So we’re basically relegated to the ESA,” he says. “It's not even working for us, but that's the thing that we have.”

The Klamath Tribes have senior water rights. But farmers in the basin are the other group that is linked to these fish. Mark Johnson represents irrigators with the group Klamath Water Users Association.

“Ultimately, the farmers, they want all fish species to thrive because if the fish are doing well, everybody's doing well,” he says.

For 15 years Johnson studied Lost River and shortnose suckers as a fish biologist with the US Geological Survey. One of the big frustrations from the irrigator standpoint, he says, is that water is prioritized to protect fish, but they’re still dying.

I asked Johnson, wouldn’t taking more water out of the lake be gambling with the existence of a species?

“Yeah, I mean, you are,” Johnson says, “But in terms of an extinction level event, I don't think that's actually going to happen. But on that trajectory were on right now, basically managing the lake the same way we have for over 20 years, we haven't moved the needle. So, something has to change.”

There are no long-term solutions for saving the native fish populations. For the first time this year the Klamath Tribes are raising juvenile fish from eggs in a hatchery. When mature, they’ll be released into Upper Klamath Lake.

This exceptionally dry year is shining a spotlight on the Klamath Basin and how there just isn’t enough water to go around. And with current climate trends, there’s little reason to think abundant water will be available any time soon.

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June 29, 2021 at 08:10PM
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French fishermen given more time to fish in Jersey waters - SeafoodSource

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French fishermen fishing in waters off the island of Jersey have been granted three more months to fish in the area without meeting post-Brexit permit conditions.

The European Union had requested an extension to transitional arrangements between the U.K. and E.U., which had originally been due to come to an end on 30 June, the BBC reported. The government of Jersey – an island and British Crown dependency off the coast of France – agreed to the extension. The new extension will last until the end of September.

Tensions in the region first flared in May, as dozens of French fishing boats set off for the main port of Jersey threatening a blockade. In response to the threats, the U.K. sent two Royal Navy gunboats to keep watch, as fishermen sounded horns, lit off flares, and displayed banners of protest.

Tensions escalated further when French Maritime Minister Annick Girardin threatened to cut off power to the island in retaliation for blocked fishing access to French fishing vessels. The fishermen accused the U.K. of delaying the issuance of licenses to small French fishing vessels – licenses required as part of the U.K.’s post-Brexit trade deal with the E.U.

Now, the vessels that have submitted applications for licenses will be given more time to fish in the region, according to the BBC. Jersey has also requested that the E.U. submit evidence of existing applications by the end of July.

In return, Jersey authorities have asked that the E.U. will also extend access for local boats that fish in E.U. waters.

The situation in Jersey has been complicated by the island’s unique governmental status – it is not a part of the U.K., and it was never technically a part of the E.U. As a “Crown dependency,” the island has control over its fishing waters, but ultimately the U.K. government is responsible for its international relationships.  

Photo courtesy of rzoze19/Shutterstock

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June 29, 2021 at 09:03PM
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IDFG announces July fish stocking schedule - Bonner County Daily Bee

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Time to grab your fishing rod and enjoy the summer sun! Fish and Game staff will be stocking over 7,500 catchable-size (10 to 12 inch) trout at the following locations across the Panhandle Region in July. All stocked fish are rainbow trout.

• Solomon Lake — Jun 28-Jul 2, 450

• Moose Lake — Jun 28-Jul 2, 500

• Clee Creek Pond— Jun 28-Jul 2, 250

• Elsie Lake — Jul 5-Jul 9, 675

• Day Rock Pond — Jul 5-Jul 9, 500

• Dismal Lake — Jul 5-Jul 9, 450

• Lucky Friday Pond — Jul 5-Jul 9, 900

• Steamboat Pond — Jul 5-Jul 9, 1,000

• Gene Day Pond — Jul 12-Jul 16, 1,000

• Lower Glidden Lake — Jul 12-Jul 16, 1,350

• Elsie Lake — Jul 19-Jul 23, 675

Stocking of all waters is tentative and dependent on river, lake, or pond conditions, Fish and Game staff said in a press release. Dates may change due to weather or staffing constraints.

For maps of these fishing locations and other angling destinations in Idaho please visit the Idaho Department of Fish and Game's Idaho Fish Planner. To learn more about high alpine lake fishing, check out IDFG's "Alpine Lakes Fishing" website.

Many of the waters highlighted are easy to access, family-friendly fishing destinations. All you need to get started is a fishing license and some basic tackle. Annual adult fishing licenses cost around $30, junior licenses (ages 14-17) cost $16, and youth under 14 fish for free.

Fishing for stocked rainbow trout, particularly in community ponds, is a great way to introduce new anglers to the sport by using simple (and relatively thrifty) set-ups like worm/marshmallow combinations or commercial baits, either near the bottom or below a bobber. The Learn to Fish webpage offers diagrams for basic bait rigs.

Most Idaho waters are open to fishing year-round, but some may have slightly different rules. Be sure to pick up a 2019-21 Idaho Fishing Seasons and Rules Booklet https://ift.tt/3dlZzwj, which outlines season dates, special regulations and bag limits at any Idaho Fish and Game offices or most sporting goods stores statewide.

Need a little help reading Idaho's fishing regulations? Go online to to view a short video on how to use the fishing season and rules book.

Kara Campbell is a regional communications manager for Idaho Department of Fish & Game.

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A Pitt student’s guide to buying the perfect fish - University of Pittsburgh The Pitt News

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By Diana Velasquez, Culture Editor
June 28, 2021

One of the best things about going to college is that you have free reign over what your room is going to look like — no matter where you live. It’s a clean slate in a way, compared to our childhood bedrooms which are painted in a garish neon green or pink we insisted on as 11-year-olds.

One of the more drastic steps you can take in your college journey is getting a living, breathing companion to share your space with. I’d suggest holding off on getting a dog or a cat. One, they’re not allowed in the dorms, and even once you move out you don’t want to be scooping soiled kitty litter with a Sunday morning hangover in your small South O apartment. 

Fish, on the other hand, rank pretty high on the list of low-maintenance pets, and they don’t require much except a clean and filtered tank and the occasional feeding of fish flakes. Besides, they’re really pretty to look at.

Karen Lukacsena — co-owner of Elmer’s Aquarium, which is located in Monroeville about 20 minutes east of Oakland — said fish are popular with college students because they’re relatively easy to care for and they make therapeutic decor.

“I can imagine if you’re a student when you have to study and you’re sitting there if you have a real natural, relaxing aquarium, that it can be very soothing,” she said.

What kind of fish should you get?

Lukacsena said for first-time fish parents there are a few kinds of fish you should think about adopting. Her first suggestion is a betta fish, a commonly sold fish that you can find in pretty much every pet store for about $10 on average. Bettas should be set alone in a five gallon tank.

“Get a single male betta. You have a single fish, maybe some snails, and have a lot of plants,” she said. “It’s a nice five gallon tank with a good filter, nice lighting and that makes it as close to the fish’s natural setting.”

Most fish aren’t going to be well suited to the small spaces you have to work with as a college student. But if by chance you happen to have more spare room for a tank larger than five gallons, you could try for some “tetras” or a school of “barbs” that like to hang out in groups of three or four and require a 20 to 29 gallon tank that will probably cost about $100 to $150.

What size tank do you need?

Well, it all depends on the size of the space you’re dealing with. Most people walk into a pet store and start by shopping for the kind of fish that they want. This isn’t really an efficient way of doing things.

Because you could go on and on and on about how you’d love to have a clownfish, but chances are you don’t have the space for a saltwater aquarium and all the set-up it requires.

So before you go looking for a fish, Lukacsena said you should first think about the amount of space you have in your room. You want your fish to be happy and healthy, with the right amount of space they need, because some small fish can live up to three years, Lukacsena added. Larger fish, such as the barbs, angel fish or cichlids can live upwards of 10 years.

What other equipment should your tank have?

Many times people make the mistake of getting plastic plants only for their fish tanks. It’s much better for your fish if the plants in their aquarium are alive and active. Lukacsena said this helps with the filtering process, by making sure the water stays clean. She also said natural plants help with tank maintenance because they create natural oxygen. 

Besides these natural plants, getting a proper filter is a must for your tank. It’s the best way to make sure the habitat is clean and scum-free. Lukacsena suggested getting a filter that corresponds with your tank size, but you could even go up a couple sizes for more cleaning power. Filters range in price depending on tank size, but start at around $10 for small fish.

With a tank full of a fish or two and some snail or plant companions, Lukacsena said your fish-keeping venture can quickly become a hobby, because of the relaxing rhythms of fish care, something that college students always need.

“You’re actually inviting nature into your environment,” she said. “I think it’s fun, it’s entertaining and relaxing.”

Leave a comment.

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June 29, 2021 at 01:33AM
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Can fish and other marine animals drown? - Livescience.com

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About 236,000 people drown every year, according to the World Health Organization. Humans aren't the only animals that drown, of course; dogs, snakes, birds and more can drown when they're caught in water with no way to escape. But what about fish and other marine animals? Can animals that live in the water also suffocate in it?

"Marine animals also need oxygen to live," said Frances Withrow, a marine scientist at Oceana, an environmental protection and conservation organization. "It's just that they live off of dissolved oxygen, while we get oxygen from the air." 

Most fish breathe when water moves across their gills. But if the gills are damaged or water cannot move across them, the fish can suffocate. They don't technically drown, because they don't inhale the water, but they do die from a lack of oxygen.

Fishing equipment, such as some types of hooks, can damage the gills. Disease can also be the cause. Pathogens, mainly bacteria, may attach to the gills, blocking them so they can't filter oxygen from the water or degrading them to the point where they no longer work. "It's just like if we had a really bad respiratory disease," Withrow said. "It makes it [the animal] work harder to breathe."

Related: What's the biggest freshwater fish in the world?

Although some fish can pump water across their gills while at rest, many fish must swim constantly so that water flows past them. If they get trapped, such as in a fishing net, they may get stuck and suffocate, Withrow told Live Science.

Sharks need their fins to swim. Some fishers catch sharks and remove their fins for foods such as shark fin soup and then toss the shark back into the water because the rest of the animal may not be valuable on the market. "This is often an illegal activity because it's unsustainable," Withrow said. "Not only is it not great for the general populations of sharks, but it's pretty cruel." The shark can't swim when it's tossed back in, so it will be eaten by predators, die of starvation or suffocate.

Other marine animals, such as turtles and dolphins, get air the way we do — they breathe it from the air. But they can only do it when they surface. Fishing equipment can trap them underwater, preventing them from doing so.

Drift gill nets, or giant nets that float in the water and are not designed to target a particular species of fish, are a major culprit. "Depending on the size of the net, it will catch anything that swims by," Withrow said. This includes fish, sea turtles and marine mammals that the fishers don't intend to sell. Other types of fishing equipment have ropes that can entangle animals, like whales, and prevent them from surfacing.

It's difficult to know how many marine animals suffocate, Withrow said, but entanglement kills 300,000 whales, dolphins and porpoises each year, the International Whaling Commission estimates.

RELATED MYSTERIES

Sometimes, areas of the ocean may not have enough dissolved oxygen to support the fish that live there. One way this can happen is if many plankton bloom simultaneously after sufficient nutrients become available. The plankton use up all the oxygen in a short period, causing fish in the area to suffocate. "The ocean is always mixing, but in strange ways," Withrow said. "So the water isn't always able to replenish that oxygen very quickly."

Moreover, warm water doesn't hold as much dissolved oxygen as cold water does, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. As ocean temperatures increase due to climate change, "dead zones" with lower oxygen levels are emerging, Live Science previously reported.

Originally published on Live Science.

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Bob Jensen: Catch fish on plastic baits this summer - Ames Tribune

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Bob Jensen, Fishing the Midwest  |  Special to the Ames Tribune

The spawn is over, so fish, regardless of species, are doing one thing: looking for something to eat. If you can put a bait in front of a fish in a way that looks appealing, they’ll probably eat it.

A good bait that will appeal to a variety of fish is a plastic bait of some sort. Plastics come in all shapes, sizes and colors, and they’ll all catch fish. Here are some ideas for catching fish on plastic baits now and for the next couple of months.

A plastic bait rigged on a jig-head will be productive much of the time. Some jigs are made for plastic baits. The best jigs for plastic have long-shanked hooks and keepers that prevent the plastic from sliding down the hook. Most of the time it works best to thread the plastic on the jig. Put the point of the hook into the nose of the plastic and thread it onto the jig.

Bob Jensen: Angling as much about people as it is fish

Fish can be color selective at times, so try a jig-head of one color with a plastic of another color. Experiment with different color combinations until you hit on the right one. Watermelon is a good plastic color in many situations, and white is another good go-to color. Everyone in the boat should be using a different color until the fish reveal their choice for that day.

In many bodies of water, the weedline is the center of activity for fish so that’s a good place to throw your bait. All sorts of fish species travel along the weedline, and a jig and plastic will appeal to them all. Use smaller baits if panfish are the quarry; larger for walleye and bass.

An eighth-ounce jig will be good most of the time. Fish it on 8- or 10-pound test line. There are lots of good line choices available. Braid is super-sensitive and also provides solid hooksets. Monofilament is very forgiving because it stretches a bit. Vegetation can be hard on line, so use line that is abrasion-resistant.

More: 'We are causing them to go extinct': Meet the professor who is working to save rare Iowa turtle species

When you get on the water, find the deep weedline. On clear lakes it will be deeper than in lakes with stained water. The deep weedline often sets up in 7 to 15 feet of water depending on the lake. Position your boat within easy casting distance of the weedline and start throwing. You’ll usually find the fish in pockets and points in the weedline. Watch your line closely as the bait sinks. Fish will often hit on the fall. If the line does anything out of the ordinary, set the hook.

Try a variety of bait shapes. The traditional plastic worm, something like a Rage Cut-R Worm in the 6-inch length is a very good starting point. If the fish are active, go to a bulkier plastic, maybe a Rage Craw. If they’re not active, go smaller. Ned Rigs have been catching a lot of fish that need some coaxing the past few years.

Plastic baits stay on the hook well. They’re not always ripping off as you pull them through the weeds like live bait does. Live bait is a great option when the bite gets really tough, but plastic is a very good place to start this time of the year when you’re just looking for some fish to catch. And, when we go fishing, that’s what we’re doing — looking for some fish to catch.

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Destination Pennsylvania: Limestone Springs Fish Preserve - WETM - MyTwinTiers.com

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Whether you are a seasoned angler or new to the sport, there’s a great spot to cast — and your chances of reeling in a fish are pretty good.

Limestone Springs Fishing Preserve in Richland Pa. is always stocked and ready to go.

“They have a lot of great fishing here — Big fish,” said Chuck Flory, of Lancaster.

“There is a record for the biggest rainbow,” said Mark Ely, Owner of the Limestone Springs Fishing Preserve. “It is 14 pounds, 15 ounces.

There is a modern fish farm on site. Once they get big enough, some of the fish are moved to the 2,000 foot stream which always has about 5,000 pounds of fish.

“There are some golden trout, some brown trout but mainly rainbow trout,” added Ely. “You can walk in here with nothing. You can rent a rod, buy bait and go fishing or you can bring your own stuff.”

You don’t need a fishing license, you do need to keep what you catch.

“We are a catch and keep facility so we don’t just throw them back and they just die so we get a better use out of them when people take them home and have a good meal out of them.”

You pay by the pound. You can also have them processed on site.

“We offer a dressed fish or a fileted fish, totally boneless.then that is ready to put on the grill when you go home.”

One of the best parts is the memories made. People have been casting their rods here since the 1950’s.

“Our biggest story is my dad brought me here or my grandfather used to bring me here,” said Ely.”

“I’ve been bringing my grandchildren since they were 5-years-old up here,” said Flory. “The oldest is 27 now and still wants to come down and fish with his pap pap. So yeah, we have a great time.”

Ely says, “It’s a lot of history here, lot of great memories, and it keeps getting better and better.

Limestone Springs, which is located between Reading and Lebanon, is open year-round. In fact, they say some of the best fishing happens in the winter.

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Bob Jensen: Angling as much about people as it is fish - Ames Tribune

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Bob Jensen, Fishing the Midwest  |  Special to the Ames Tribune

Show Caption

I’ve had conversations recently with people who like to fish but are a bit or a lot frustrated and disappointed. Some of these are anglers who, in years past, took annual fishing trips to Canada. Due to the border closure, they are unable to go now, and they don’t know when they’ll be able to go again.

Other anglers describe their attempts to find lodging south of the border as being very difficult. Many anglers who would ordinarily go to Canada are staying in resorts in Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota and other places. There are a limited number of resorts, and with more people looking for lodging, it can be challenging to find a place to stay.

A frequent comment from these frustrated anglers goes something like this: “Fishing in Canada is special. Fishing south of the border just isn’t the same.” Fishing in Canada, because of the huge supply of places to fish and fewer anglers, can be memorable, and the wilderness feel in Canada is hard to replicate south of the border. That’s a valid point.

More: When can Americans travel to Canada? Answer elusive as border restrictions extended

But the thing is, we can’t, for now, go to Canada, but we can still go fishing, and we should. Some of us want to go fishing; many of us need to go fishing. Just because we can’t go to Canada, though, doesn’t mean that we can’t have wonderful, memorable experiences. For me and many anglers, it’s not as much about the place where you are as it is about the people you’re with fishing.

I recall many years ago when Gary Roach, Jeff Murray and I took a Canadian fly-in trip to a lake 300 miles north of the closest road. We caught many big northern pike and lake trout, and it was memorable. But I also remember fishing with Gary on Lake Mille Lacs and Lake of the Woods in Minnesota. Those locations were closer and easier to get to, and those trips were equally memorable. The people are just as important and memorable as the place.

Some anglers who favor Canada suggest that there’s always something different around the next island and there are always new areas to explore. Point taken and I agree.

But, again, I recall the opportunity I had to spend lots of time with fishing pioneer Ron Lindner back in the mid-1980s. Ron and I headquartered at Camp Fish near Walker, Minnesota, a lot back then.

For subscribers: 'We are causing them to go extinct': Meet the professor who is working to save rare Iowa turtle species

We would leave in the morning, boat in tow, and head to a lake. It was always a different lake. We would fish that lake a couple of hours, put the boat back on the trailer and travel a few miles to another lake. We would do this four or five times a day. We did lots of exploring and made lots of nice memories. People, not places.

We can’t go to Canada for now, but there are still plenty of places to go fishing. It might require a bit more work finding a place to stay, but it can be done. And, although sometimes the fishing might not be quite as good as you might expect in Canada, it can still be memorable.

I have distinct memories of catching smallmouth bass on Kabetogama Lake in northern Minnesota that would rival any Canadian lake. The same thing can be said of largemouth bass fishing in central Minnesota near Alexandria and walleye fishing on Green Bay in Wisconsin. I remember the fish-catching part of those outings, but I have even better memories of the people that I shared the boat with on those days. People, not places.

There is still a lot of time to go fishing in the next few months. Make plans now and remember the people that you’re fishing with will bring fonder memories (usually) than the places where you go fishing.

The Link Lonk


June 28, 2021 at 06:28PM
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Bob Jensen: Angling as much about people as it is fish - Ames Tribune

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Fish

How Chef Ed Szymanski Perfected Fish and Chips at NYC’s Dame - Eater

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2021 Eater New Guard members Ed Szymanski and Patricia Howard’s pop-up, Dame, was supposed to sell fish and chips to New Yorkers for a few weeks in the summer of 2020 during the pandemic. Just about a year later, they’re still dunking hunks of hake into the deep fryer.

“We thought we’d be doing three or four orders every hour,” says Szymanski. “We didn’t think we’d be selling 100 pounds of fish every week.” The response to the couple’s battered hake, fried to crispy perfection, was explosive, and our video followed the duo as they tested out recipes six weeks before opening the doors to their permanent space in NYC’s West Village.

“The pandemic has left a lot of chefs untethered and that’s allowed pop-ups and people like us to really blossom and start cooking their own food,” Szymanski says, pullying a whole hake out of his fresh daily delivery. He prefers this breed for his fish and chips, as it’s more local to the area than the commonly used cod, but it’s a similar flaky white fish that holds up well to frying.

He debones the fish, adds some lemon zest, salt and sugar, and then dips it straight into batter made with flour, sweet potato starch, rice flour, baking powder, cold beer, and vodka. Szymanski stresses the importance of making the batter to order each time, as he wants the fish to steam inside the fresh, cold batter as it fries in the hot oil. He finishes the dish with a few mists of vinegar from a spray bottle, which adds that signature tangy flavor without causing the crispy fish to get soggy. Szymanski and his team go through about 150 pounds of hake on the weekends alone, and churns out about 100 orders on his busiest days.

“People in England don’t eat fish and chips that much, like it’s not a common part of your diet in the U.K.,” says Szymanski, a U.K. native. “So I was like, ‘there’s no way it’s going to be popular in America,’ and their response was just overwhelming straight off the bat.”

Aside from feeding NYC crispy seafood, Szymanski and Howard have another goal they hope to achieve with the opening of their restaurant: narrowing the pay gap between those who work in the front of the house, and those who work in the back. “It’s part of who we want to be as restaurateurs,” Szymanski says. “We’re going to use our privilege and our position as restaurant owners to help people more than just outside the four walls of the restaurant. Our mission as restaurateurs is to give back to the community in more ways than just cooking them dinner.”

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June 28, 2021 at 08:01PM
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Fish

What's your favorite fish species....and why? - North Texas e-News

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Did you ever give thought to your favorite species of fish to catch? I mean, if you had the opportunity to fish for anything, anywhere, what would it be? And then, what is your favorite species to fish for around your home waters in Texas?

I guess I have led a charmed life when it comes to catching fish. I simply love the feel of a fish tugging on my line and through the years, I have had the opportunity to fish for a good number of species. If challenged to answer my own question, I think my favorite species to catch would be big northern pike on a remote lake in northern Saskatchewan but pose that question to me while I’m watching my ‘cork’ disappear below the surface of a farm pond by the tug of a big bluegill and my answer will change to fit the moment.

There is something very special about fishing remote waters where the fish have never seen a lure and catching is as easy as getting the appropriate lure in the water. Everyone that loves fishing should treat themselves to a trip to Canada to catch pike, walleye, lake trout and arctic grayling. But I warn you, once you have experienced the scenery and remoteness of these lakes; you will more than likely make plans to return.

But right here in Texas we have a smorgasbord of fishing opportunities to experience, everything from sport fishing off the Texas coast to catching white bass, crappie, largemouth, catfish and stripers on the inland lakes. How many of you have fished offshore from an economically priced party boat for red snapper and grouper or, targeted bull redfish or flounder during the fall ‘run’?

Right now and throughout the hottest part of the summer, shark fishing is at its best along the Texas coast. Some of the better shark action occurs around shrimp boat while the crew is culling their catch. No need to go very far off the beachfront to catch shark, most sharks are caught in the Gulf within sight of land. 

How about going after a brute of an alligator gar on the Trinity River? Now, that’s a different type fishing that guys like guide Chris Moody specialize in.

Lake Texoma up on the Texas/Oklahoma borders offers some of the very best striper fishing in the country. Fed by the Washita and Red Rivers which have the ‘just right’ salinity to facilitate a successful striper hatch, Texoma is a self sustaining striper fishery providing excellent fishing throughout the seasons.

I love catching largemouth bass and grew up fishing for them but I must admit I seldom bass fish on the larger reservoirs these days but I absolutely love fishing smaller waters for these hard-fighting fish. The past few years, I have renewed my love for creek fishing on my good friend’s place that joins a feeder creek on Lake Fork. We catch a variety of fish in the creek and often set a short trotline for catfish to insure we have plenty of fish for an evening creek side fish fry.

Luke Clayton with a feisty white bass. After reading this week’s column, if your interest in fishing is not sparked, Luke suggests you might think about scheduling your next tee time at the golf range. photo by Luke Clayton

Because I love cooking and eating fish almost as much as I enjoy catching them, I have no qualms about keeping a limit of just about any species I catch with the exception of largemouth bass. Not to say bass aren’t good eating, the smaller ‘yearling’ bass are very tasty and I often keep a ‘mess’ of them when fishing private ponds and lakes.

Schooling fish such as white bass and stripers provide not only adrenaline packed action but excellent eating as well. I often hear folks say they don’t enjoy eating white bass or stripers because of the ‘red meat’.  Once they learn to use that fillet knife correctly and remove the small strip of red meat, they usually rate the flavor right up there with crappie or catfish. I often joke with my buddies that crappie are neutral tasting fish, they are fish that ‘non-fish eaters’ enjoy eating. But don’t get the idea that I will snub my nose at a platter of crispy crappie fillets, no sir! But I am just as happy with properly cleaned, seasoned and cooked white bass or striper fillets.

I love striper cooked in butter and blackening seasoned, not truly blackened but cooked in just enough butter to give them flavor and a bit of ‘crunch’. With a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, striper cooked I this manner is about as good as fish eating gets!

I have a friend that spends a lot of time fishing for bream and is a master at using a small fillet knife to remove the tasty fillets. We used to scale and fry sunfish whole when I was a kid but in later years, I began filleting them. When you think about it, even an average size bream provides a couple of fillets about the size of a jumbo shrimp and they are just as tasty to my way of thinking.  

I’ve often made the statement that I would remain a deer hunter the remainder of my life if I knew all I could harvest would be spike bucks. The same holds true with fishing, I plan to be a fisherman as long as I am able to cast a bait. In my ‘golden’  years this might not entail a trip to a remote lake up in Canada on the border of the Northwest Territories but I hope to be dunking minnows in a nearby farm pond.

It is my fervent desire that if you have not yet discovered the joy of fishing, you will give it a try. It’s doesn’t take a giant northern Pike or trophy largemouth to get you ‘hooked’. A trip to a local city pond for bluegills might just do the trick. Consider booking a trip with a guide that offers trips for ‘action’ species such as white bass, catfish or stripers. Let them expose you to some red hot ‘catching’ and the fire will be lit! If it’s not, then you probably need to schedule your next “Tee Time” at the local golf course!

Contact outdoors writer Luke Clayton via email www.catfishradio.org. Watch the weekly video by searching A SPORTSMANS LIFE on YouTube.

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June 28, 2021 at 09:10AM
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What's your favorite fish species....and why? - North Texas e-News

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Fish

NM Department of Game and Fish considers river otter reintroduction into the Gila River - New Mexico Political Report

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While various environmental advocacy groups are pushing for river otter reintroduction in the Gila River basin of New Mexico, biologists say this could impact several sensitive fish species that the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish has been working to protect and recover.

These fish once coexisted with the river otters in a natural ecosystem and Michael Robinson with Center for Biological Diversity said they could live together once again. But one of the questions that the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish must grapple with is whether the ecosystem as it is today can support both the sensitive species of fish and the otter.

Tristanna Buickford, a spokesperson for the department, said there is not a timeline in place for the river otter reintroduction effort and the department is currently exploring the possibility. She said more studies will need to be done.

Lessons from the Rio Grande

If river otters are reintroduced to the Gila, lessons from other introductions could be applied including the reintroduction of otters to the Rio Grande near Taos.

The reintroduction effort took place when the department introduced 33 otters from Washington from 2008 to 2010. That population has now expanded to about 200 otters in the Rio Grande. However Stewart Liley, the chief of the department’s wildlife management division, told the Game and Fish Commission this month that the genetic diversity of those otters has declined.

That led to Game and Fish bringing seven otters captured in Louisiana to New Mexico to be released into the core population area to expand the genetic diversity.

Liley said that if the state is going to reintroduce river otters into the Gila River, more otters need to be introduced with greater genetic diversity. That means capturing otters from several different places in the country and releasing them in the Gila River.

The Gila River is isolated from other otter communities and the closest population of otters is in the Verde River near Phoenix.

Concerns about native fish

Proponents of otter reintroduction say that the small predator could help control invasive species like crayfish and bullfrogs that prey on young fish. But Kirk Patten, a fisheries biologist, told the Game and Fish Commission last week that the otter could also prey on larger native fish like the Gila trout and native chubs. He emphasized that the Gila River and the Rio Grande are very different systems. There are more introduced fish species in the Rio Grande for the otter to prey on.

However, there is a portion of the Gila River where there are not as many sensitive species and fish like channel catfish live for the otters to eat.

Robinson, a senior conservation advocate for Center for Biological Diversity, said the river otter could potentially prey on Gila and headwaters chub, which some scientists believe should be grouped together as roundtail chub following a genetic analysis completed by the Arizona Department of Game and Fish a few years ago.

The Gila and headwaters chub are considered endangered species, although that could change if they are classified as roundtail chub.

Robinson said if the river otters are reintroduced it must be done in a way that does not imperil the chub populations.

“There’s a good chance that otters actually benefit native fish more than they harm them,” Robinson said.

He said the Gila River is a good location for river otters because “compared to almost anywhere else in the lower 48 states, the headwaters of the Gila River are a remarkably untrammeled landscape.”

Robinson said before Game and Fish makes that decision, the species recovery plan for the Gila chub should be updated. This has been delayed amid the discussions of classifying Gila chub as the same species as roundtail chub.

He said it would be good to have “more fish in more places” so that those species would have more resilience to predation.

“River otters probably will at some point or another kill some of them,” he said.

He said he would recommend if the otters are reintroduced a small number should be released downstream in the Gila Bird Area.

This would give space between the headwater chubs and the river otters. He also recommended monitoring populations of Gila chub in Turkey Creek, a tributary of the Gila River. Turkey Creek has a dry section seasonally between it and the Gila River, which could decrease the chance that the otters would move up the creek.

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June 28, 2021 at 01:05PM
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Fish

Damaging ‘fly-shooting’ fishing in Channel sparks concerns - The Guardian

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The UK has been accused of allowing a fleet of mainly EU “fly-shooting” fishing boats “unfettered access” to the Channel, without a proper assessment of the impact on fish populations, the seabed or the livelihoods of small-scale fishers.

Organisations representing small-scale fishers on both sides of the Channel have warned that the fleet is having a “devastating” effect on their catches. They are calling for a review of the vessels’ UK licences until an impact assessment has been carried out.

Fly-shooter fishing boats, sometimes called Danish or Scottish seiners, tow lead-weighted ropes along the seabed at either end of a net that encircles and captures entire shoals of fish.

Victoria Prentis, the environment minister, said in response to a parliamentary question this month that fly shooters had a lower environmental impact than other gear types because they could be operated from lower-powered vessels with lower fuel consumption.

Caroline Lucas, the Green party MP, described this assessment as “not good enough”.

A catch is processed onboard a fishing boat operating out of Newhaven, East Sussex. At least 75 boats use the fly-shooting method in the Channel. Photograph: Bloomberg/Getty

One expert told the Guardian that fly shooters had “killing power” estimated at four to 11 times as much as that of inshore fishing boats.

Currently, at least 75 vessels use this fishing method in the Channel, up from a handful years ago.

Jeremy Percy, director of Low Impact Fishers of Europe (Life), accused the government of allowing “unfettered access” to fly shooters at the expense of the under-10 metre fishing fleet, which he said had been “hanging on by its fingernails for years”.

“We’re being told by our fishermen that it’s pointless going to sea when these boats have been through, because there’s nothing left,” Percy said.

In a letter to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Percy said: “From the increase in reports from coastal fishermen on both sides of the English Channel of the impacts of the use of the Danish seine, there is no doubt that the method is having a devastating effect and not least on non-quota stocks.”

These stocks, of species such as bass and mullet, were “vital” to the under-10 metre and non-sector fishermen (those outside the large co-operative “producer organisations”), who have become increasingly reliant on them, “largely due to restrictive government policies”, he said.

Years of restrictions, unfair quota allocations and the news, since Brexit, that foreign vessels with a track record would be allowed into the six to 12-mile inshore zone, despite promises that UK boats would have exclusive access up to 12 miles, have left inshore fishers in crisis, they say.

A net is winched in to a fishing boat trawling in the Channel. The fly-shooting method can pull in an estimated 11 times as much fish as inshore fishing boats using conventional methods. Photograph: Bloomberg/Getty

EU vessels using electric pulse fishing, another controversial fishing method, were banned from UK waters this year, after years of lobbying by inshore fishers. The under-10-metre fishers say the battle against fly-shooters is history repeating itself.

Fifteen of the 75 vessels are UK registered and licensed; the rest are French, Belgian and Dutch. EU boats fishing in British waters have to be licensed by the UK’s Marine Management Organisation (MMO), but they are not specific to gear type.

Lucas said: “Defra have clearly dropped the ball on this damaging form of fishing, issuing licences without a proper assessment of the damage fly shooting is causing to stocks and the seabed. It’s just not good enough for the minister to say that it’s acceptable because it has a lower environmental impact as it’s carried out by smaller vessels.

“The government has committed to protecting 30% of land and sea for nature by 2030 and it needs to take urgent action on this, or there will be no sea life left to protect,” she told the Guardian.

Brian O’Riordan, deputy director of Life, which represents 10,000 fishers from the Baltic to the Mediterranean Sea, said: “They shouldn’t be given carte blanche to fish in an area where the small-scale sector is struggling to make a living, with a question mark over sustainability.”

Michel Kaiser, professor of fisheries conservation at Edinburgh’s Heriot-Watt University, estimates that a fly shooter can achieve the same fishing capacity as between four and 11 smaller boats an hour. This is based on a fly shooter covering 1m sq metres of seabed on each fishing trip, compared to a smaller otter trawler, which would cover 231,500 sq metres, or 92,600 sq metres an hour, he said.

“The killing power of one boat is much higher than [that of] lots of little boats,” Kaiser said. “It comes down to a socioeconomic issue: the promotion of one large vessel against 11 smaller ones.”

The Guardian asked the MMO whether it had conducted an impact assessment of the fleet and how many boats were licensed in the UK. It said 15 UK-registered and licensed vessels had engaged in fly seining in the Channel and the North Sea between 2011 and 2021. It did not respond to the query about impact assessment.

It added: “The MMO Single Issuing Authority grants licences to EU vessels to fish in UK waters provided they have a track record in accordance with the [EU-UK] trade and cooperation agreement (TCA). These licences are not specific to gear type and vessels engaged in fly seining may also deploy other gear types.”

A Defra spokesperson said: “We are considering the potential effects of fly-shooting fishing gear used by vessels in UK waters, and have been discussing this with different sectors of the industry. Any future decisions on the use of this, or any other gear, will be based on the best available evidence.”

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June 28, 2021 at 01:02PM
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Damaging ‘fly-shooting’ fishing in Channel sparks concerns - The Guardian

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Fish

Heat brings more reports of dead fish in Minnesota lakes - Echo Press

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But fish die-offs have been more frequent and widespread than usual, as temperatures soared to record highs in June across much of Minnesota.

The DNR has received a couple hundred reports of fish die-offs in the last three weeks from lakes all over the state involving significant numbers of fish, said Tom Burri, a limnology consultant for the DNR.

“It’s pretty broad in the state right now in the last few weeks,” he said. “And it is definitely more than we’ve seen, other than the 1998 drought.”

When lakes heat up, fish get stressed, and they're more vulnerable to deadly infections — either viral or bacterial, Burri said.

"We've had a long stretch of hot weather, and it's stressful for fish,” he said. “It opens these fish up for these opportunistic infections to get in the system more than they (already) are. And it leads to the mortality of these fish."

Climate change is likely a contributing factor as Minnesota lakes gradually get warmer, Burri said, increasing the stress on fish.

“Our most northern lakes in Minnesota also feel the heat, because those are some cold- or cool-water fish up there,” he said. “That rapid change in temperature stresses those fish out equally.”

Die-offs commonly affect multiple species, including carp, sunfish, crappies, perch, largemouth bass and northern pike, he said.

While infections have been the culprit behind the most recent wave of deaths, there can be other sources of fish kills, including the depletion of oxygen in a lake while it’s frozen, or a pollution spill.

Burri encourages people to report fish die-offs to the state duty officer by calling (800) 422-0798.

Providing information such as location, estimated number and size of fish and species is helpful, Burri said, as well as any obvious signs of a hazardous spill or other potential cause.

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June 28, 2021 at 01:46AM
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Heat brings more reports of dead fish in Minnesota lakes - Echo Press

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Fish

MIA 1, WAS 5: Jazz Bows, but Fish Drop Finale - Fish Stripes

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Sunday’s finale of the four-game set between the Miami Marlins and Washington Nationals read on paper as a classic pitcher’s duel.

In one corner, you have the Marlins’ workhorse, Sandy Alcantara, entering Sunday’s game with a 1.19 ERA over his last 4 starts. For Washington, it was their ace, three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer.

Through the first 5 innings, both limited the respective offenses to 1 run. Alcantara allowed an unearned run to score in the first following a Josh Harrison single, while Scherzer surrendered a leadoff triple to Jazz Chisholm, followed by an RBI double courtesy of Jesús Aguilar.

Come the 6th inning, though, and what was shaping out to be another great outing for Alcantara quickly turned ugly.

A four-pitch walk to Kyle Schwarber would be magnified when shortstop Trea Turner deposited a 97-mph sinker over right-center for his 12th home run of the season. After a Juan Soto single, Alcantara would be bit by the home run-bug once again, this time at the mercy of Josh Bell.

Sandy would exit two batters later, allowing 5 runs (4 earned) over 5.1 innings, having walked and struck out 3, respectively, as the Marlins lost 5-1. Alcantara - whose record now sits at 4-7 - now owns a career 6.50 ERA in 7 starts against the Nationals. The right-hander later acknowledged to having pitched Sunday’s game under the weather, expressing what manager Don Mattingly referred to as a “bit of a head-cold.”

Scherzer would battle to the tune of 27 pitches through his 6th and final inning to finish with 7 strikeouts en route to his 7th win of the season. Of note, too, is the future Hall of Famer’s 3rd inning strikeout of Starling Marté, which would be career punchout No. 2,900. Should he stay healthy, Scherzer can easily become the 19th member of the 3,000 strikeout club later this season.

For the Marlins—who now fall to 33-44 with 12 games to play before the All-Star break— Sunday’s loss also saw the team’s offensive bipolarity reach a new low. The Fish failed to record one out via the fly ball compared to 17 of their outs on the ground and 10 strikeouts. The Marlins have now struck out 10 or more times in 35 games this season.

Miami will be off Monday as they travel to Philadelphia to begin a three-game series against the Phillies on Tuesday. As of Sunday, no starter for Tuesday’s series opener has been announced, though first pitch is slated for 7:05 Eastern.

Washington Nationals (5) @ Miami Marlins (1), Win Probability Graph, 27 June 2021

Baseball-Savant

Fish Picks Answer Key

1. Max Scherzer
2. Over
3. Over
4. No
5. Nationals

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June 28, 2021 at 04:17AM
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Fish

'These fish are miraculous': Rejuvenation of New Haven river lauded by scientists - New Haven Register

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The alewives are back and thriving, and so is the West River Nature Preserve.

Proof of the success of removing the Pond Lily dam in the West Rock section of New Haven a few years ago is that the number of fish counted this year in Save the Sound’s trap in Woodbridge almost quadrupled last year’s record, with 200 swimming up the West River to spawn in Konolds Pond. The importance of the rejuvenation has been noted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Last year, Save the Sound, an environmental agency, counted 53 all season. But this year, on April 22, “56 moved through and into the trap in one day,” said Jon Vander Werff, fish biologist for Save the Sound. “I was shocked in one day that we beat the [2020] number.”

Water flowing in the West River after the demolition of the Pond Lily Dam, 2016.

Arnold Gold / Hearst Connecticut Media

It takes three to five years for alewives to reach sexual maturity, so this year’s count really showed results of returning the river to its natural state. In addition, “we’re seeing no net loss of wetland,” Vander Werff said, just a shift from wetlands that are always underwater to those that are wet part of the year.

That, in turn, has brought back a lush amount of foliage, with at least 88 species of plants thriving, such as Joe-Pye weed, which is good for pollinators as well as for erosion control. Along the West River, it grows as high as 8 feet. Other vegetation has been planted, in a cooperative project with the greenhouse program for people with disabilities at Edgerton Park.

Combined with 1,000 alewives that were seeded from Bride Pond in East Lyme, there are 1,200 spawning in Konolds Pond in Woodbridge, more than three-quarters of a mile upstream from where the dam once blocked the river’s flow near the Walgreens on Whalley Avenue, according to the agency.

Not only that, “this is the third year in a row we’ve gotten a sea lamprey in the trap,” Vander Werff said. They’re parasitic, jawless fish that attach to other fish, suck their blood and play “a vital role in the ecosystem for other fish eating them,” as well as their larvae, known as ammocoetes.

Save the Sound also built a line of stones across the river that keeps the water level upstream from dropping and protects a wooden bridge’s pilings.

“This riffle is where the … sea lamprey ammocoetes were utilizing as habitat for becoming adults,” Vander Werff said. “Out of the entire river, they selected a spot that was engineered to become adults. We must be doing something right.”

The alewives are anadromous fish, meaning they live in saltwater but enter fresh water to spawn, like salmon. They swim upstream from Long Island Sound and the juveniles will swim back, some into the Atlantic Ocean, Vander Werff said. “They spawn in wetlands and ponds and slow water,” he said. “The dam was a barrier for them to access adequate spawning grounds.”

The alewife population had been declining “up and down the Eastern Seaboard,” Vander Werff said. It was the result of habitat loss, including dams and development, overfishing and pollution, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

“The population in entirety is doing better, but it’s doing better from extremely low, devastated numbers,” he said.

The native perennial, Joe-Pye weed, thrives along the banks of the West River in New Haven on June 23, 2021 in an area that the Pond Lily dam once stood.

Arnold Gold / Hearst Connecticut Media

In addition to Pond Lily, Save the Sound has removed dams on Whitford Brook in Mystic and the Quinnipiac River in Meriden and Southington, according to its website.

“There’s no way we can have robust sport-fishing populations if there’s no food for them,” Vander Werff said.

The 132-food Pond Lily dam, with its 80-foot dilapidated spillway, dating back to 1794, served as a water source for a grist mill at one time. But for the alewife and blueback herring in the West River, “their population was really being destroyed,” Vander Werff said.

Before the dam was removed in the winter of 2015-16, there was a fish ladder to help the alewives swim upriver, “but it fell into disrepair,” Vander Werff said.

Jon Vander Werff, fish biologist with Save the Sound, stands in front of a diadromous fish research trap at Konold's Pond in Woodbridge on June 23, 2021. The trap allows Vander Werff to obtain estimates of fish populations and the times that they swim upstream to spawn.

Arnold Gold / Hearst Connecticut Media

“This was a really important one because of the Green Corridor in New Haven and up into Woodbridge,” he said. “Because where they were spawning wasn’t adequate. There wasn’t a lot of young reaching adulthood.”

Once the alewife larvae grow into juveniles, they swim down to Long Island Sound. Not all will make it though. The fish, also known as menhaden and river herring, are an important part of the food chain. In the rivers and ponds, they are eaten by large- and smallmouth bass and river trout, as well as raccoons, snapping turtles and birds such as great blue herons and osprey.

Out in the Sound and the ocean, the fish are food for cod, striped bass, tuna and haddock. Anglers use them for bait.

In addition to the alewives, Vander Werff said, “I have surveyed gizzard shad here. Also brook trout, which is really exciting,” and an American eel, “the size of your arm.”

The funnel trap built at the bottom end of 74-acre Konolds Pond, made out of PVC pipe, rebar, aquaculture netting “and a lot of zip ties,” caught its last straggler June 10, Vander Werff said. Alewives are a protected species and are quickly returned to the water.

“I think it’s fantastic,” said Suzanne Paton, supervisory fish and wildlife biologist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Charlestown, R.I. The agency helped finance the dam removal with $661,500 in federal money distributed after Superstorm Sandy in 2012.

“It was really important for the Fish and Wildlife Service to understand how quickly the fish populations would recover. … We’re trying more and more to restore the channel to its historic state,” Paton said.

A sign near the West River in New Haven on June 23, 2021 details the history of the Pond Lily dam, it's removal and the effects of the removal.

Arnold Gold / Hearst Connecticut Media

She said the agency also has supported monitoring of the fish populations in Pond Lily and Hyde Pond in Ledyard, from which the Mystic River flows.

Vander Werff didn’t want to predict what will happen next year, but he’s confident the alewives are back to stay.

“These fish are miraculous,” he said. “As soon as you help them the slightest bit, they bounce back insane.”

edward.stannard@hearstmediact.com; 203-680-9382

The Link Lonk


June 27, 2021 at 06:05PM
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'These fish are miraculous': Rejuvenation of New Haven river lauded by scientists - New Haven Register

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