Fishes of the Western North Atlantic 563 



Massachusetts, not until late May along the coast of Maine, and not until some time 

 in June in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. 



The spent fish — except those that die, as many do — drop down again to brackish 

 or salt water immediately after spawning, so that all of them have deserted fresh 

 water by the middle of May in Massachusetts, nearly as early in Maine (where we 

 have seen a bushel of large fiish taken as early as May 4 from a weir near Cutler at 

 the mouth of the Grand Manan Channel), and by the end of June at the latest in the 

 Gulf of St. Lawrence. 



Habitat and Migrations. Smelt, whether American or European, make their growth 

 in brackish or salt water if they are not landlocked. During the marine phase of their 

 life they are confined to so narrow a coastal belt that none has ever been reported 

 more than six miles or so out from the land and seldom below 2—3 fms.; the deepest 

 record for them is 9—10 fms. at the mouth of Port-au-Port Bay on the west coast 

 of Newfoundland, where 185 specimens were taken in a half-hour haul with an otter 

 trawl. Many of them spend their entire growth period in estuarine situations, including 

 the tidal reaches of rivers. 



Their habitat in the summer along any particular section of the coast appears 

 to depend chiefly on the temperature of the water. From Massachusetts southward, 

 most of them (though not all) desert the harbors and similar situations during the 

 warmest season, moving, it seems, only far enough out and deep enough to find slightly 

 cooler water. Along the coasts of Maine and the Maritime Provinces of Canada, how- 

 ever, where water temperatures rule lower, they are found in the harbors, bays, and 

 estuaries all summer. 



With the onset of autumn, those that have moved out to sea re-enter the harbors 

 and estuaries, so that by mid-October, or early November at the latest, practically the 

 entire population is concentrated there. In our experience the smaller ones tend to 

 reappear the earliest, but reports are contradictory in this respect. At any rate, by 

 December some have even worked up into stream mouths to the head of tide. But the 

 fish fated to breed that season, most of which are two years old or older, do not actually 

 enter fresh water until late winter or early spring when the water off the mouth of the 

 stream has warmed to at least 39°— 42° F (4°— 5.5°C), if it has chilled below that figure, 

 and until the ice has gone out of the stream, if any has formed there during the preceding 

 winter. 



The movement of the maturing fish into fresh water commences late in February 

 along the southern coast of New England and southward, some time in March along 

 northern Massachusetts, seldom until April along the eastern part of the Maine coast, 

 and not until the latter half of May along the southern shores of the Gulf of St. Lawrence. 



This species, though confined to very shoal water, is not a bottom fish but tends 

 to hold position at some intermediate level. The small ones, and probably the large ones 

 also, gather and travel in schools that are composed for the most part of fish of about 

 the same size, i. e. the product of one year's hatch. In the smaller harbors they tend to 

 move in and out with the tide, especially if the tidal flow is strong. But while they 



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