by J. Kocik
Table
The term "river herring" is applied collectively to alewife, Alosa
pseudoharengus, and blueback herring, Alosa aestivalis. The
coastal range of the blueback herring is from Nova Scotia to Florida; the
coastal range of the alewife extends from Labrador to South Carolina. In
coastal rivers where ranges overlap, fisheries for these species are typically
mixed. Both species are anadromous and undertake upriver spawning migrations
during spring. Alewives may live as long as 10 years and reach a length
of 36 cm (14 in.). Blueback herring live for about 7 or 8 years and reach
a maximum length of about 32 cm (13 in.).
Alewives spawn in spring when water temperatures are between 16o C and
19o C; blueback herring spawn later in spring, when water temperatures
are about 5o C warmer. Fecundity and age at maturity for both species are
similar. Between 60,000 and 300,000 eggs are produced per female; most
individuals are sexually mature at age 4. River herring have supported
one of the oldest documented fisheries in North America. It was exclusively
a U.S. inshore fishery until the late 1960s, when distant-water fleets
began fishing for river herring off the Mid-Atlantic coast. The principal
fishing gears used to catch river herring are fish weirs, pound nets, and
gill nets. Recreational fishing is insignificant. The U.S. nominal catch
averaged 24,800 mt annually between 1963 and 1969. Landings subsequently
declined to an average of 4,000 to 5,000 mt until the mid-1980s; and more
recently, to an average of about 500 mt from 1994-1996. The 1996 total
(464 mt) nearly matched the record low of 423 mt in 1994. Maine, North
Carolina and Virginia typically account for more than 90 percent of total
landings from the Gulf of Maine through the Middle Atlantic.
In response to the observed decline in nominal catch and apparent resource
conditions, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) has
prepared a comprehensive coastwide management plan for shad and river herring,
to facilitate cooperative management and restoration efforts between the
states. However, recovery has not been consistent. Several river herring
populations along the east coast are still being exploited at higher than
optimal levels and a great deal of historic spawning habitat remains unavailable.
The dramatic decline in landings since the mid-1960s reflects substantial
declines in resource abundance since that time.
For further information
Crecco, V.A. and M. Gibson. 1990. Stock assessment of river herring
from selected Atlantic coast rivers. Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission,
Washington, D.C. ASMFC Spec. Rpt. No. 19.
Harris, P.J. and R.A. Rulifson. 1989. Investigations of ocean landings
for American shad and river herring from United States East Coast waters.
Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, Washington, D.C. ASMFC Spec.
Rept. No. 18.
Richkus, W. A. and G. DiNardo. 1984. Current status and biological characteristics
of the anadromous alosid stocks of eastern United States: American shad,
hickory shad, alewife, and blueback herring. Martin Marietta Environmental
Center, Columbia, MD.
