Interannual Comparison of Juvenile Alewife Age and Growth in Eastern Massachusetts

Presenter

Adamaris Agosto

Campus

UMass Amherst

Sponsor

Allison Roy, Department of Environmental Conservation, UMass Amherst

Schedule

Session 1, 10:30 AM - 11:15 AM [Schedule by Time][Poster Grid for Time/Location]

Location

Poster Board A12, Campus Center Auditorium, Row 1 (A1-A20) [Poster Location Map]

Abstract

Alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus) are anadromous fish that migrate between freshwater and marine environments, spawning in freshwater rivers and lakes and spending their adult lives in the ocean. Limited information is known regarding the characteristics of successful juvenile emigrants and the importance of access to estuary habitat for juvenile growth and survival. During July 2021 and 2022 we used pelagic purse seines to collect juvenile river herring from Whitman's Pond and the Weymouth Back River in Weymouth, Massachusetts (USA). Actively emigrating juveniles were also collected downstream of Whitman's Pond during their emigration. We counted daily growth increments using sagittal otoliths to determine estimates of age and growth among sample locations over time. Preliminary results from 2021 suggest that juvenile river herring sampled from estuary habitat display higher growth rates than lake resident fish, potentially due to greater resource availability in the marine environment than in lake habitat. Age and growth comparisons between actively emigrating and lake resident fish will provide important context for understanding characteristics of fish choosing to emigrate, and allow for a more nuanced interpretation of growth for fish collected within estuary habitat. The results of this research will contribute to a greater understanding of juvenile river herring emigration and estuary habitat use dynamics and will inform population modeling efforts by providing valuable age and growth information during habitat transitions during early life history stages.

Keywords

Fish, Lentic, Life history, Population, Connectivity

Research Area

Environment Effects on Ecosystems

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