THE AMERICAN SHAD 



By 



RANDALL P. CHEEK, Fishery Biologist 



Bureau of Commercial Fisheries Biological Laboratory 

 Beaufort, N.C. 285 16 



ABSTRACT 



The life history of the American shad ( Alosa sapidissima) is described. The 

 economic importance of the commercial and sport fisheries are reviewed, and the 

 status of research and nnanagennent of this species are summarized. 



INTRODUCTION 



The American shad, Alosa sapidissima 

 (Wilson), is the largest member of the herring 

 family (Clupeidae) in North America. The 

 shad is also known by other common names 

 such as "white shad," "roe shad," and just 

 plain "shad" and is one of the best known 

 fishes of the Atlantic Coast. Although the 

 species is distributed along the east coast 

 from the St. Lawrence River, Canada, to the 

 St. Johns River, Fla., it is most abundant 

 from North Carolina to Connecticut. In 1871, 

 about 12,000 young fish were taken across 

 the continent by train and planted in Sacramento 

 River, Calif. More were planted in succeeding 

 years in Sacramento and Columbia Rivers, 

 where they prospered. Now they occur on the 

 Pacific Coast from the Mexican border to 

 Cook Inlet, Alaska. Unsuccessful attempts 

 have been made to introduce this fish into 

 streams of the Mississippi River drainage, 

 peninsular Florida, Colorado, the Great Lakes, 

 and Great Salt Lake. The shad is found 

 throughout its range in sufficient quantities 

 to support fisheries of great commercial and 

 recreational values. Because little information 

 is available on Pacific Coast stocks, this 

 leaflet is primarily about stocks on the Atlantic 

 Coast. 



DESCRIPTION 



The American shad is similar inappearance 

 to many other herringlike fishes. It has a com- 

 pressed fusiform shape, single soft- rayed back 



and anal fins, deeply forked tail fin, strongly 

 serrated midline of belly, and large scales that 

 are easily lost. The color is silvery with a 

 bluish green metallic luster on the back. The 

 shoulder has a large dark spot followed by 

 several smaller spots. A longer-than-deep 

 cheek bone and the outline of the lower jaw 

 distinguish from other clupeids such as 

 the alewife, blueback herring, and hickory 

 shad. Mature males average between 2 and 3 

 pounds, and mature females between 3 and 4 

 pounds. Shad weighing up to 15 pounds were 

 recorded in the early years of shad fishing, but 

 today few shad weigh over 9 pounds. 



LIFE HISTORY 



Spawning 



American shad are anadromous fish; that 

 is, they spend most of their life in the ocean 

 but return to fresh- water streams to spawn. 

 The first summer of their life is spent in the 

 stream where they were hatched (fig. 1). In 

 the fall, when the young shad are about 3 to 6 

 inches long, they migrate to the ocean where 

 they remain until mature. Males mature when 

 3, 4, or 5 years old, and females when 4, 5, 

 or 6 years old. Most spawning shad are 3 or 

 4 years old. Mature shad return to their natal 

 streams to spawn in early spring. The time 

 the shad enter the rivers varies with latitude. 

 In the St. Johns River, Fla., shad enter the 

 river as early as November; in North Carolina, 

 as early as February; but in eastern Canada, 

 as late as July. 



