EXPERIMENTAL TRANSPORTATION OF LIVE SHAD PAST 

 SUSQUEHANNA RIVER DklB 



The Susquehanna River has its source in Otsego Lake, New York, 

 and flows a distance of U22 miles to its mouth at the head of Chesapeake 

 Bay, Before the construction of dams in the I800's, the Susquehanna River 

 shad fishery was one of the most important on the Atlantic Coast^ extend- 

 ing from its mouth to Binghamton, New York, The construction of many low- 

 head dams (6 to 8 feet) in the Pennsylvania waters of the river during the 

 I800's greatly restricted the movement of shad (Alosa sapidissima ) ; conse- 

 quently the shad runs in these waters were greatly diminished (Stevenson, 

 1899 )o 



With the advent of hydroelectric dams on the river, the upstream 

 migration of shad has been further restricted o Holtwood Dam, 2k miles 

 above the mouth of the river, was completed in 1910; Conowingo Dam, 10 

 miles above the mouth of the river, was completed in 1928 5 and Safe Harbor 

 Dam, 32 miles above the mouth of the river and 8 miles above Holtwood Dam, 

 was completed in 1932- Figure 1 shows the location of these dams on the 

 rivero Conowingo Dam presents the first obstruction to migratory fish, 

 and because this dam is located in Maryland it prevents shad and other 

 anadromous species from reaching the Pennsylvania waters of the Susquehanna, 

 The height of each dam above normal tailwater elevation is as follows s 

 Conowingo Dan, 95 feet; Holtwood Dam, 55 feet; and Safe Harbor Dam, 62 feet< 

 If shad are to return to the waters above these dams, workable fishways 

 will have to be installed, which by necessity must be economically justi= 

 fied. Before a usable fishway can be constructed, much basic biological 

 and hydraulic information is needed. 



To obtain some of this information the General Assembly of the 

 Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in May 1951 authorized the Pennsylvania Fish 

 Commission by Act No, 68 "to make a comprehensive study of the migratory 

 habits of fish, particularly shad, and the stocking and tagging of shad 

 below and above Safe Harbor Dam, the Holtwood Dam and Conowingo Dam, and 

 to cooperate with the Federal Government and the Joint State Government 

 Commission in connection therewith." The Fish and Wildlife Service was 

 asked by the Joint State Government Commission to cooperate in transporting 

 adult shad above the dams on the Susquehanna River. The purpose of this 

 experiment, conducted in the spring of 1952, was to determine the feasi- 

 bility of transporting shad for long distances and transplanting therao 

 Information concerning the success of spawning of the transplanted shad, 

 the survival of young, and the mortality suffered by juveniles and by adults 

 in descending the dams was also desired. 



The Pennsylvania Fish Commission provided five men and most of 

 the equipment for the project, while the Fish and Wildlife Service fur- 

 nished one man (the author) from its shad-research project to supervise 

 the operation. 



