Shad Found in Paulins Kill Upstream of Former Dam Site

NJ Division of Environmental Protection biologists have officially documented American Shad in the Paulins Kill upstream of the former Columbia Lake dam site.

The dam was removed this past winter to restore this historic spawning pathway, as it had been blocking migration in New Jersey's third-largest tributary to the Delaware River for more than 110 years.

While photos from anglers have confirmed the presence of American Shad in the Paulins Kill earlier this spring, Bureau of Freshwater Fisheries biologists have now officially documented this species in the Paulins Kill upstream of the dam site. Shad, as with others, such as salmon, are anadromous, meaning that they migrate up rivers from the sea to spawn.

The dam, owned by the Division of Fish and Wildlife since the 1950s, was 18-feet high making it the largest removal to date in New Jersey. The removal was accomplished through a diverse partnership of state and federal governments, and non-governmental organizations with a majority of funding for the removal provided by DEP's Office of Natural Resource Restoration with monies from natural resource damages. The Nature Conservancy of New Jersey (TNCNJ) provided project management and oversight over the multi-year project in coordination with American Rivers.

Fisheries Biologist Ross Shramko holds one of the American Shad captured and released while electrofishing the Paulins Kill River in Blairstown. in June 2019.

The Nature Conservancy of NJ also provided significant funding through private donations, and grants from:
US Fish and Wildlife Service
USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service
Corporate Wetlands Restoration Partnership
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation
Atlantic Coastal Fish Habitat Partnership
Delaware Watershed Conservation Fund
Leavens Foundation and
Tom's of Maine.

The USFWS has provided support throughout various phases of the project including the design of critical fish passage structures through the I-80 bridge which traverses the Columbia Wildlife Management Area.

The project is ongoing, with stabilization of key areas along the newly formed stream channel underway, and removal of the powerhouse to begin in upcoming months. The Division's fisheries staff will continue to monitor the recovery of American Shad in the river and will conduct additional sampling this fall to confirm if they have successfully spawned in the river.

Anglers are reminded while American Shad may be targeted in the Delaware River mainstem, they cannot be targeted in other freshwaters of the state. Anglers who see or accidentally catch an American Shad while fishing for other species are encouraged to report their sightings to the Division at NJFWfish@dep.nj.gov or 908-236-2118. Please include the date of sighting, location, any photos, and your contact info.

SOURCES
www.nj.gov/dep/fgw/news/
www.nj.gov/dep/fgw/columbiadam_project.htm

Shad Migrating and Spawning in the Millstone River

Fishermen standing in the Delaware River above Chester, NJ with the bleaching mills,
smokestacks, and church spires of Gloucester along the shore. - James Fuller Queen, 1820 via Picryl 

American Shad were found migrating and spawning in the Millstone River for the first time in 173 years after the removal of the waterway’s Weston Mill Dam in Manville in summer 2017.

The dam blocked the migration of shad and other migratory fish, and the dam's removal marks an important step in the restoration of the Millstone River and the larger Raritan River Basin.

Great efforts are being made to restore migratory routes of anadromous fish species (those which live in the ocean but spawn in fresh water), including river herring and American Shad.

A flurry of dam removals have taken place along the Raritan, Musconetcong, and Millstone Rivers in recent years, with more on the way, including those along the Paulins Kill (i.e. Columbia Lake).

Shad fishing on the Delaware River has been hot the last few springs - in fact, even novice shad fishermen are currently catching more than a dozen per trip while wading its banks. This is not the case throughout the state, as fishing for American Shad is prohibited on all other New Jersey waters, as populations recover.

The 38-mile-long Millstone River, a tributary of the Raritan River, boasts a wide array of fish diversity with more than fifty species found in recent years. Migratory species, including American Shad, Gizzard Shad, Blueback Herring, Striped Bass, and American Eel, have been documented passing the Island Farm Weir fish ladder on the Raritan River near its confluence with the Millstone River, approximately 1.5 miles downstream of the former Weston Causeway Dam.

Efforts continue to restore American Shad and other migratory fishes by reconnecting historic migratory pathways. The Millstone River's Weston Causeway Dam was removed during the summer of 2017. The Weston Causeway Dam, located just downstream of the Wilhousky Street bridge in Manville, was the first impediment to fish passage on the Millstone River. The 133-foot long and five-foot high dam was originally built to provide power at the Weston Mill. The site included a gristmill, sawmill, the dam, and associated waterpower features. The dam had no current purpose; the mill buildings were claimed by arson in July, 1983. In recent years, the dam had partially failed.

Juvenile American shad from Millstone River - NJDFW photo

Juvenile American shad were captured for the first time upstream of the recently removed Weston Mill Dam on the Millstone River by sampling crews conducting biannual monitoring of this natural resource damage (NRD) restoration project. The American Cyanamid Superfund Site is one of several contaminated sites along the Raritan River and its tributaries.


SOURCE njfishandwildlife.com/artmillstone.htm

The New Jersey Spring Shad Run

There are many signs of spring in New Jersey including the migration of shorebirds and horseshoe crabs converging on Delaware Bay. There is also a spring migration in the water as American shad move into the Delaware River to spawn. This is no modern ritual and seining (netting) activities with shad go back to the Lenni Lenape Indians of our area who used that method long before colonists appeared.

How many shad will be seen and when the "shad run" occurs at different times each year because they vary depending on water temperature and conditions.

The American shad is the largest member of the herring family. They are found on the Atlantic coast from Newfoundland to the St. John's River in Florida. They spend three to six years in the ocean and then return to freshwater in the spring to spawn.

Adults usually weigh from four to eight pounds, but New Jersey State and International Game Fish Association record shad are more than 11 pounds.

Anglers know them for their strength and fighting ability.

The Lewis Fishery Report for the Delaware River for 4/15/19 says that "The river was about 4.58' when we would have been trying to make a haul tonight. Too high to fish. Forecast for the crest at Lambertville is for 7.2' now. With a lot of luck we might be able to get back at it Thursday or Friday."

Fishing for shad on the Delaware River usually begins around the end of March. The warm water discharged from a power plant in Trenton warms that section of water.

Low water and warm temperatures will mean an earlier shad run in the Delaware.

As the water warms to 50° F, and the population migrates upstream, shad will be caught all the way up river to the New York state line and beyond through the end of May and into June.

This video shows a couple clips of herring and hickory shad spawning in a Maryland tributary on April 13, 2015. Shad and herring are anadromous fish, meaning they migrate from the ocean to freshwater streams each spring to spawn.

Shad are primarily saltwater fish, but they swim up freshwater rivers to spawn in the spring, and in June 2017 American Shad were documented in the Musconetcong River in Hunterdon and Warren counties after an absence of at least a century.

Unlike some other fish species, many shad survive the spawning and swim back to the Atlantic Ocean.


NJDEP Delaware River Shad Fishing Reports state.nj.us/dep/fgw/del_river_rpt19.htm
Delaware River Shad Fishermen's Association www.drsfa.org