About the reef
The newest artificial reef in MA was a collaborative effort between the Town of Harwich and DMF. The reef is located two miles south of the entrance to Saquatucket Harbor in Harwich. In March 2016, 1,600 cubic yards of concrete rubble was deployed into the waters of Nantucket Sound at depths between 30 and 34 feet. The beneficial reuse of materials from the old Harwich High School was used to create patch habitat arrays across the 10‐acre site. The design of the reef enhances fishing for black sea bass and scup by providing structure for fish in an otherwise featureless location The Harwich reef continues to gain popularity as a nearshore destination for enhanced recreational fishing access.
DMF enacted regulation prohibiting all commercial fishing activity on the reef site and within a 100-meter buffer zone. The regulation makes this the first and only reef site in MA dedicated exclusively to recreational saltwater fishing.
DMF conducts bi-annual monitoring of the site to assess;
- species presence
- material stability
- recreational use
Current status of the reef
DMF divers conduct annual monitoring to assess species presence, material stability, and recreational use. DMF also maintains a series of continuous data loggers that collect bottom temperature at hourly intervals and record any fish previously fitted with an acoustic tag. Data is recovered during monitoring visits to the site.
As the Harwich reef ages, it continues to undergo various stages of colonization and succession. We expect it to resemble natural structured habitat over time.
Today you can find a variety of fish species on the reef, including;
- Black sea bass
- Cunner
- Horseshoe crab
- Knobbed whelk
- Northern sea robin
- Scup
- Spider crab
- Tautog