MATOS - Mid-Atlantic Acoustic Telemetry Observation System

Project Title: Assess the prevalence of Blueback Herring using Mohawk River spawning habitats to determine if the use of this previously unavailable habitat is a population source or sink Hudson River

MATOS Project Code: HRBBH24

Data Type: Data

Project Duration: April 2024 - December 2024

Project Description: Blueback Herring are a native anadromous species to the Hudson River proper but are non-native to the Mohawk River. Prior to the creation of the Erie canal and lock system in the late 1800s, Blueback Herring did not have access to spawning and nursery habitats in the Mohawk River due to a 30-meter-high set of natural falls in Cohoes, NY. The Mohawk/Erie canal complex is highly impacted due to anthropogenic activities exposing Blueback Herring to additional sources of mortality beyond natural mortality. The primary source of mortality is at several hydroelectric facilities located throughout the system. This project aims to better understand upstream and downstream survival of Blueback Herring utilizing spawning habitat in the historically unavailable Mohawk River/Erie Canal.

Objectives:

Determine if current mortality rates in the Mohawk River result in a population sink or source
Develop upstream and downstream mortality rates and identify potential mortality bottlenecks
Determine prevalence of the Hudson River Blueback Herring spawning stock using the Mohawk River

Management Benefits:

Inform fisheries managers as to the benefit or lack thereof to access to the Mohawk River

Principal Investigator:	Wes Eakin (New York State Department of Environmental Conservation; Cornell University)
Email:	william.eakin@dec.ny.gov

Point of Contact:	Wes Eakin
Email:	william.eakin@dec.ny.gov

Collaborators:

Dewayne Fox (Delaware State University)
Amanda Higgs (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation/Cornell University)

NYSDEC Hudson River Blueback Herring