Laptew Productions » River Herring

Narrow River – Wide Assortment of Wildlife

mlapuser — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 15:03:54 +0000

Headwaters of the Pettaquamscutt or Narrow River

Gilbert Stuart's birthplace is the site of a fish ladder

Anadromous Fish Return from the Sea to Spawn

Alewives return to their natal river

Catadromous Species Spawn at Sea and Their Offspring Journey into Freshwater

glass eels

After hatching in the Sargasso Sea, “glass eels” or elvers infiltrate streams, creeks and marshes in Rhode Island

These resilient animals can live over 20 years in our ponds and lakes before heading back to the Sargasso Sea to spawn and die

: American Eel

The “Fish Moon” and River Herring

mlapuser — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 19:49:55 +0000

Herring Return on Full Moon

The Full Moon in April Motivates Herring to Move

The 2012 herring run started early this year; perhaps due to the unseasonably warm temperatures in March. However, very few herring ran up the river during the last week–I was getting a little nervous.

Did the industrial fleet of pair trawlers get ‘em?

Pair trawling equals overfishing

Would this be the worst year yet?

Pair trawling tight to the Rhode Island shoreline

Perhaps the recent cold snap that dropped water temperatures over four degrees had more to do with the reluctance of the alewives to swim up the Narrow River?

Maybe it was the lack of rain and weak tides that conspired to reduce the number of spawning fish?

Just as I was starting to give up hope, a fresh batch of chrome-plated fish made their way up the small fish ladder and eventually into the pond. It won’t be until June when we get the final fish counter results to know how strong or weak this years run has been.

Fishing Our Way Down the Food Chain

mlapuser — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 10:42:00 +0000

The Lion’s Mane Jellyfish is the largest jellyfish in the world

When does Jellyfish season open?

Look at the RI landings

Top 10 seafood landings (by pounds)

In 2010, more pounds of squid were brought ashore in Rhode Island than any other seafood.

Squid (Illex)
Atlantic herring
Little skate
Squid (Loligo)
Mackerel
Scup

12,4231,611
8,279,065
7,616,857
7,446,094
4,355,810
4,300,039

16%
11%
10%
10%
6%
6%

When I was young my family and I ate all of the above, but we also had a steady supply of cod, haddock, flounder, halibut, pollock and even swordfish—the majority of which could be called “local” with a straight face. In the fifty years since, overfishing for these prize species—those that fetched highest ex-vessel prices—has done huge and well-documented damage to both our once-abundant groundfish and the habitats that sustain them.

Now that we’ve pummeled the stocks of bottom dwellers and longlining has dramatically reduced apex-predator stocks like sharks, tuna, marlin, swordfish, and so on, the race is on to catch every last critter that can be consumed. Look at the above list of commercially landed species and consider: In my childhood—heck, even now—most would fall neatly under the “bait” heading….

If we don’t get our regulatory asses in gear, we’ll soon be dining on spider crabs and jellyfish. Speaking of the food chain—its bottom links in particular–did you take your krill oil today?

On the Lookout for River Herring

mlapuser — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 05:24:39 +0000

Hunting for Herring

Yesterday afternoon I went looking for river herring…I wasn’t the only one.

A great blue heron swooped in and kept an eye open for returing alewives. We were both out of luck.

A great blue heron flys through the trees

Last night was a return to winter-like conditions with freezing temperatures that shut down the run of herring. It seems both me and the heron were out of luck.

The Last Few Days Have Been Ducky

This is a great time of year for watching birds, especially ducks. The display of colors is breathtaking and seeing the same ducks return to the same ponds, puddles, creeks, and rivers is a welcomed sight. The quacking in the marsh behind my house is another matter.

Returning Herring

mlapuser — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 17:50:03 +0000

Herring ready to spawn

Snow forecasted for this afternoon. I wonder where these river herring are right now? I will project that the first river herring will be seen the second week of March at Gilbert Stuarts birthplace and museum.

Fall color and still water

mlapuser — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 13:08:36 +0000

When will the river herring return to Bissel Cove this year?

This photo was taken during an early morning outing last fall. This area has a very steady flow of water and it didn’t freeze up very much this past winter.

The big question is when will the herring first show up this year? How many will return? How many were intercepted at the mouth of the bay by the industrial fishing fleet?