An extensive restoration effort has been undertaken to re-establish populations of the 

 anadromous Atlantic salmon, Sal mo salar , in New England's major river systems. This 

 individual (approximately 60 cm) was photographed durings its spawning migration in the 

 Salmon River, Connecticut. Photo by R.E. DeGoursey, University of Connecticut. 



species have moved from nearshore areas by 

 midsummer. Exceptions include striped 

 bass that may remain in coastal waters 

 until late October or early November, and 

 fall spawners (e.g., salmon) that begin to 

 move into the estuaries in late winter and 

 early spring and are found in the river 

 systems until early winter. Following 

 spawning, adults return to the open ocean 

 to overwinter. Rainbow smelt remains in 

 the lower estuaries throughout the winter 

 and ascends to freshwater to spawn as soon 

 as the ice begins to break up on upper 

 estuaries (usually February to March). 

 Juveniles of most anadromous species 

 occupy estuarine and nearshore water 

 through late spring and summer, then move 

 offshore with declining water temperatures 

 in fall. 



Another group of fish is more typi- 

 cally associated with estuarine conditions 



in southern New England. Tomcod are win- 

 ter spawners that move from brackish to 

 more saline waters in the spring. White 

 perch and hogchokers move from the lower 

 estuary where they overwinter to more 

 brackish waters to begin feeding and 

 spawning. They remain active in estuaries 

 throughout the warmer months. Winter 

 flounder are also found abundantly in 

 estuaries and bays in early spring. They 

 spawn in late winter and early spring in 

 lower portions of the estuaries. Tyler 

 (1971b) reported that this species concen- 

 trates feeding in soft substrate habitats 

 of the intertidal zone. Adult winter 

 flounder begin moving into deeper waters 

 during the summer to avoid elevated water 

 temperatures in the shallows, while juve- 

 nile fish remain in relatively shallow, 

 heavily vegetated, muddy bottoms through- 

 out the year where they feed on benthic 

 invertebrates. 



41 



