Concord River Alewife Restoration

Concord River Fish Monitoring Training 2020

Creating Community Through Conservation

“to improve the quality of life for the people of Lowell through education and through the creation, conservation, and preservation of parks, open spaces, and special places.”

River Herring - 2 types • *Alewife • Blueback Herring

Concord River = Alewives Mystic River = Bluebacks

Image Credit: Merrimack Valley. Image credit: Karl

Musser, under a CC BY-SA 2.5 license.

Diadromous Fishes Migrate between fresh water & sea water

Alewife Anadromous (sea freshwater for spawning)

American eel Catadromous (freshwater sea for spawning)

Sudbury Assabet

Billerica Dam =

No Fish Passage

BIG PICTURE

LP&CT’s early work in alewife monitoring

Wamesit Falls at Centennial Island Fish Ladder

Bartlett

Spalding House

The Concord River flows north

The Merrimack River flows south, then northeast

Our Partners

Olson Electric

In 2006, NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service listed River Herring as a species of concern.

Source: River Herring - River Herring Benchmark Assessment: Volume II (includes State/Jurisdiction-specific Stock Status Summaries) (May 2012)

526 108

91,616

449,356

0

50,000

100,000

150,000

200,000

250,000

300,000

350,000

400,000

450,000

500,000

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

# He

rrin

g

Merrimack River Herring Returns @ Essex Dam, Lawrence, MA

Herring

May 3: 26 river herring

May 4: 100 river herring; 1 shad (1st lift)

May 6: 4,000 river herring

May 7: 8,500 river herring (as of 2pm)

May 11: 39,572 river herring

May 14: 143,548 river herring

May 18: 348,666

May 21: 395,998

June 1: 448,205

2018 FISH COUNTS (at Essex Dam in Lawrence)

Data Collection • Data: Data sheets, app, on-line form

– If datasheets, take a photo or scan to Lisa

• Timer: personal phone, watch, timers • Counter/Clicker: phone app “Click Counter” • Clipboards/pencil (personal) • Polarized sunglasses (personal)

Counting: • Count the fish

going UP the ladder

• Watch for air bubbles tricks

Epicollect5 App for Data Entry Sign in with Google only (Android or iOS)

On phone app: ‘2020 Concord River”

Demonstration

Other wildlife seen at the fish ladder

• ducks • turtles • woodchucks • great blues

herons • otters, and • other species of

fish (lamprey)

When: • May 11 – June 13 • 7 AM – 8AM (13 hours of coverage) • 10 minutes/hour • Sign up with Lisa (Google calendar on website)

Register: on-line (same page as monitoring calendar)

Where (Parking/Access): Waterhead Mill, 850 Lawrence St. • Park in parking lot spaces, not in fire lane • You will be emailed a parking sign to put on your

dashboard. • No access to Gatehouse • Walk through gate up to the ladder

Registration for Monitoring https://wp.me/PaMTYW-iOc

Safety Information • If there’s an emergency, please call 911

• Do not climb into the fish ladder

• Youth aged 12-17 years old may participate in the program under the direct supervision of a guardian or parent and are required to wear a Personal Floatation Device (PFD)

• Please contact Jane or Lisa if you see a problem with the fish ladder

A few updates on other LP&CT projects…

Connector Trail

Connector Trail