2018 River Herring Survey

Calling all Citizen Scientists!

We need your help for the 2018 Long Island Volunteer River Herring Survey!

Alewife and Blueback Herring are species of river herring native to Long Island. Like salmon, they are diadromous, which means they split their life cycle between salt water and fresh water. Each spring they return from the ocean to "run" up Long Island's tributaries to spawn in fresh water. Unfortunately, dams and culverts have restricted their access to most of this important habitat.

Seatuck is working with partners across the region to improve access and restore local populations of these ecologically important fish. The Long Island Volunteer River Herring Survey - organized by Seatuck, the Long Island Sound Study and Peconic Estuary Program - aims to find the tributaries where "remnant" runs of river herring still exist and then to monitior the size and timing of those runs.

Participants in the survey are asked to commit to surveying a local tributary from mid-March through mid-May. The survey protocol involves visiting a neighborhood river or stream and spending 15 minutes looking for alewife or signs of their presence. The visits can occur daily, weekly or as often as possible. All data is good data - the more trained eyes we have on our tributaries, the better. Observations and information from the survey visit is then submitted through a easty-to-use form on your computer or mobile device and automatically becomes part of our study.

FINAL Training Session:

Thursday, March 15, 6:00 - 7:00, Scully Estate, Islip - RSVP/Info: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

BONUS, the 3/15 training will be followed by a screening of DamNation! at 7:30 - join us!