Kids & Family

Winchester Residents Participate in Herring Monitoring Program

Residents are working with Mystic River Watershed Association.

 

Herring matter. Herring count. And that is exactly what Winchester residents have discovered in their efforts to help the Mystic River Watershed Association (MyRWA) with their newly initiated Herring Monitoring Program.  

This baseline study will provide valuable information to marine biologists who are studying river herring, referring collectively to two similar species - the Blueback and Alewife herring - in one of the Commonwealth’s largest urban watersheds.

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Winchester volunteers are working with more than 120 other volunteers from watershed cities and towns as part of this effort. The monitoring program takes place at the newly remodeled Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation dam between the Upper and Lower Mystic Lakes, which span Winchester, Medford and Arlington.  

Volunteers stand over the new fish-ladder at the dam to count the herring as they make their way to the Upper Mystic Lake to lay eggs (or spawn). Volunteers are at the dam in 10 minute shifts, over a 12 hour period each day counting herring.  Estimates can be made from data collected to determine how many herring are running upriver between April 1 and mid-June.  

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Asked why she was participating in this, Caroline Rogers Broderick of Winchester said:  “The kids and I are very excited to be part of the monitoring effort.  It’s been great for the kids to see such a large group of people dedicating their time and energy to support local wildlife and to see how much organization, training and planning is involved.  We love getting down to the water’s edge and having a closer sense of how much is going on down there!!  Seeing the fish migration gives us all a feeling for how powerful the forces of nature are, even right here in Winchester.  It has been a wonderful experience for all of us.” 

Volunteer Fred Yen of Winchester noted, “Growing up in a suburban setting it's very exciting to witness right in our backyard, wildlife that you can envision is integral to a global cycle. The herring are coming back from years in the ocean where they were an essential part of a food chain that went up to the cod on our plates.”

Monitoring river herring is especially important in light of the species’ recent population decline. Over the last decade, coastal landings of both river herring species averaged a little more than one million pounds—indicating a decline of more than 98 percent when compared to averages from 1950 to 1970.

Between 2000 and 2010 Alewife counts in Massachusetts’ Monument and Mattapoisett Rivers—two of the state’s most significant herring runs—plummeted almost 85 and 95 percent respectively.  River herring population decline is associated with many factors including pollution, by-catch (unintentionally caught fish), lack of spawning habitat, habitat degradation, and dams.

In April, river herring — after traveling hundreds of miles from the northern Atlantic Ocean — make their way up the Mystic River to spawn.  Before the new dam, efforts like MyRWA’s Bucket Brigade have allowed herring to enter the Upper Mystic Lake.  The new fish-ladder, a step-like structure that enables fish to pass through the dam, provides access to an additional 165 acres of prime spawning habitat and allows MyRWA volunteers the opportunity to conduct an accurate count of river herring in the Mystic for the first time.  This data will become an important baseline determining critical herring trends and learning more about habitat conditions.  Since the program began in April, over 3,800 herring and more than 700 eels have been counted.   

Since 2006—the year that The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) listed river herring as a species of concern—fishing river herring in Massachusetts has been illegal. Low herring numbers prompted the National Resources Defense Council to file a petition in August 2011 to list river herring as Threatened under the Endangered Species Act. In November 2011 NMFS agreed to investigate the petition and is currently in a twelve month scientific review before assigning a classification.

In addition to reaching out to the community by engaging volunteers in Citizen Science efforts,the Mystic River Watershed Association has planned educational outreach events, inviting the public to the dam to learn about the Program and witness the herring and eel migration.  

Open houses are scheduled for Sunday, May 20 from 12-3 p.m. and Thursday, May 24 from 3-7 p.m. See www.MysticRiver.org for more details.  Please join us at these free, public events!  

This program would not be possible without the support and collaboration with the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries and the generous financial support from Federal Realty Investment Trust.

Though largely unseen, herring are an important component of a healthy Mystic River Watershed.  River herring are integral to the fresh water and marine ecosystem; they are prey for ospreys, bald eagles, striped bass, sharks, tuna, seabirds, and marine mammals including whales, porpoise and dolphins.  Through monitoring efforts, we are provided a glimpse into their journey and can better track this pulse of spring.  

Join MyRWA on May 20 at the Blessing of the Bay Boathouse, 32 Shore Drive, in Somerville for a celebration of the herring at the 16th annual Mystic River Herring Run and Paddle. The day’s events include a 5K road race starting at 9AM, the Mystic River Report Card presentation by the US Environmental Protection Agency at 10 a.m. and a 3, 9 or 12 mile paddling race beginning at 11AM. Seewww.MysticRiver.org for more details and to register.

Celebrating its 40th anniversary, the Mystic River Watershed Association (MyRWA) was founded in 1972 and has largely functioned as a volunteer-run organization, mobilizing activists on a project-by-project basis. Its mission is to protect and restore the Mystic River, its tributaries and watershed lands for the benefit of present and future generations and to celebrate the value, importance and great beauty of these natural resources.


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