Herring Return to the Patapsco

A master of the "hold 'em close to the camera" technique

River herring making a comeback in Patapsco River

River herring — alewife and blueback herring — were once among the most abundant species in the Chesapeake, but their populations are so low all along the East Coast that they were recently considered for listing under the federal Endangered Species Act.

Stocking river herring is a unique part of the Patapsco project, which also stocks American and hickory shad. Shad — which are a popular sport species — are stocked in several tributaries around the Bay, while there have only been a couple of experimental efforts to rear and release river herring in recent decades.

“We haven’t done a full-scale herring project, so this is all kind of new for us,” said Brian Richardson, who oversees hatchery operations for the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.

The stocking takes place in the portion of the river upstream from Baltimore Harbor and is funded with mitigation money from the Masonville Dredged Material Containment Facility constructed to hold material dredged by the Maryland Port Administration.

The port’s mitigation efforts have also supported numerous other projects in the area, including the restoration of wetlands and other areas around nearby Masonville Cove, which was recently designated as the nation’s first urban National Wildlife Refuge.

So, I don't know how I feel about Baltimore having an "urban National Wildlife Refuge" (sounds like a hip-hop party or rave to me), but I do think that restoring herring and shad to the Patapsco is worth while.  I did a little trout fishing (put and take) in the Patapsco up above the harbor a few years ago, and while it was pretty trashy (most rivers near cities are, for some odd reason), it looked like it could support fish well enough if there weren't any blockages to migration (which is a common problem).

Herring, in particular, may also benefit from the planned removal of Bloede Dam a few miles upstream in Catonsville. The funding for the project was recently announced by the USF&WS. Two other upstream dams, Simpkins and Union, were removed in 2010, and when Bloede comes out, most of the river will be open to migrating fish.

I've posted on the removal of Bloede Dam twice already.

And yes, a good article from the Bay Journal which doesn't annoy me.