band near and parallel to the shore. They later dispersed widely as 

 the Sound waters became warmer. Sanders also found that the 

 most important single food organism was the copepod Pseudocalanus 

 minutus which constituted more than seventy per cent of the food 

 by number. 



Specimens collected by the writer ranged from four to fifteen 

 inches (TL). 



Economic Importance: 



The herring is one of the most important food fishes in the world. 

 During 1957, 296,833 pounds of sea herring were landed at Rhode 

 Island ports. These fish were valued at $12,892. In addition, large 

 quantities of this species were utilized as trash fish for reduction. 

 Young herring four to six inches long are canned as sardines. The 

 smaller herring are usually sorted out by the fishermen as they 

 bring higher prices. Special efforts are sometimes made to capture 

 juvenile herring due to their attractive price. 



Genus Pomolobus 



(41) Pomolobus mediocris (Mitchill) 1815 

 Hickory shad, hickory jack, hick 



Specimens: 



This species is common at the Point Judith traps from April 

 through fall. Draggers take large numbers of hickory shad in Block 

 Island Sound during spring and fall. This species is the second 

 largest of the anadromous herrings and reaches lengths up to two 

 feet. Most Rhode Island specimens examined ranged from 10 to 

 16 inches (TL). 



Economic Importance: 



In Rhode Island, this species is usually utilized as trash fish or 

 sold to lobster fishermen as bait for their pots. Farther south, where 

 it is more abundant, this species is sometimes sent to market. 



(42) Pomolobus pscudoharcngus (Wilson) 1811 

 Alewife, sawbelly, buckie, river herring 



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