Are the alewives running in Damariscotta?
The alewives run during May 1-June 15, but most reliably from Mother’s Day to the end of the first week of June.
Are the alewives running in Maine?
The bad news is that many Mainers have never seen an alewife run because Maine’s historically thriving alewife population has plummeted during the last two centuries. Dams, pollution and overfishing have taken their toll. Southern Maine’s Alewife Brook, for example, no longer has alewives.
What is a fish ladder in Maine?
Built in 1807 by the combined efforts of the towns of Newcastle and Nobleboro, the fish ladder was constructed to allow alewives to bypass the mills blocking the falls between Damariscotta Lake and Salt Bay.
Where do alewives spawn?
Spawning takes place in lakes and sluggish stretches of rivers above tidal influence. Landlocked alewives move from deep water to shallow beaches in lakes or move up streams to ponds to spawn in spring. Females usually move to the spawning areas just before the males.
Where can I see alewife in Maine?
Alewives travel out of Machias Bay into the river to the dam at the outlet of Gardiner Lake. The dam has a fishway where the alewives can be viewed. There is also a unique harvest here. The fishway enters the lake next to a small beach.
Are alewives good eating?
Alewife and blueback herring are similar to Atlantic herring (sardines) and are good sources of protein and omega-3s. Use caution when eating, as alewife and blueback herring contain numerous small bones.
What do alewife fish eat?
Alewives in freshwater populations eat mostly zooplankton, especially small crustaceans such as copepods, cladocerans, mysids, and ostracods. When they grow larger than 11.9 cm, they feed mostly on larger, bottom dwelling crustaceans. Some spawning adults eat small fish or fish eggs when in shallow waters.
Is alewife fish edible?
Sure, you can eat them during lean times, and maybe the old hands will wax poetic about smoked and salted alewife, but nowadays the fish are likely to be used for pet food, fertilizer or lobster bait. Yet their importance may be far greater than most of our other native fishes.
What do alewives taste like?
They taste like mackerel. They’re great on the grill but they’re best fried.” Leviton opted to fry his alewives. He dredged them in heavy cream mixed with egg yolks to increase the stickiness for breading, so the fine fish bones would melt during pan frying.
Is alewife edible?
Sure, you can eat them during lean times, and maybe the old hands will wax poetic about smoked and salted alewife, but nowadays the fish are likely to be used for pet food, fertilizer or lobster bait.
Is alewife a good eating fish?
Can fish go through dams?
The dams have fish ladders for adult fish, and each is capable of passing fish through spillways. Over time, collection facilities for juvenile fish were installed at three of the four dams. But when the dams were built, the primary passage method for juveniles was through turbines.
Are alewife edible?
What do alewife look like?
Alewives have an overall silvery color with a grayish green back. A black spot at the eye level is directly behind the head. Adults have longitudinal lines that run along the midline of the body. Small alewives have a violet sheen on the sides while adults have a golden cast on their heads and upper parts.
Why are alewives called alewives?
Alewife reach a maximum length of about 40 cm (16 in), but have an average length of about 25 cm (10 in). The front of the body is deep and larger than other fish found in the same waters, and its common name is said to come from comparison with a corpulent female tavernkeeper (“ale-wife”).
Is alewife good eating?
Why are they called alewives?
So what was an alewife? Quite simply, an alewife was a woman in medieval England who made ale. Back in the days before there were pubs and taverns, individual women would brew up ale and serve it in their own homes.
Where are Maine’s oldest Alewife fisheries?
Welcome to historic Damariscotta Mills, Maine – home to one of Maine’s oldest and most productive alewife fisheries. The stone fish ladder that is the centerpiece of Damariscotta Mills was constructed in 1807 by the Towns of Nobleboro and Newcastle because, for nearly a century, mills blocked access for fish to the freshwater falls.
How many alewives in Damariscotta Lake?
The hot weather put an end to this years alewife run, which was already winding down. The final count of alewives getting into Damariscotta Lake to spawn is 1,047,918! Now that’s a lot of fish!
How do I get to the Alewife Festival in Newcastle?
Click for directions to the Fish Ladder. A shuttle bus to the Alewife Festival will be available all day from the Lincoln County Publishing Company parking lot at 116 Mills Road, Newcastle.
Can I volunteer at Damariscotta Mills?
See the full festival Schedule. We have a planning committee of volunteers from Damariscotta Mills and larger community of volunteers who staff the festival on the day. If you are interested in volunteering on the day see Volunteering. Join us! Click for directions to the Fish Ladder.