Sheila M. Eyler

Migratory stocks of river herring, alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus) and blueback herring (A. aestivalis) have declined as a result of overfishing, poor water quality, and loss of spawning and nursery habitat. To provide access to previously blocked spawning and nursery areas, fish passage facilities have been installed at stream blockages. In 1997, a fish ladder was installed on Unicorn Lake, a tributary of the Chester River in Maryland. In 1998 and 1999, we evaluated the effectiveness of the fish ladder for passing adult river herring and surveyed the upstream habitat for juvenile...

Little published information exists on shortnose sturgeon (Acipenser brevirostrum) in the Chesapeake Bay. During a reward program for Atlantic sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrinchus), 32 shortnose sturgeon were captured in the Chesapeake Bay and reported by commercial watermen between January 1996 and January 2000. Thirteen of the 32 shortnose sturgeon were sonically tagged, and 6 of these telemetered individuals were tracked during daylight hours within the upper Chesapeake Bay. The distance (km) and time (days) between consecutive relocations were use to estimate movement rates as km/day....