Dead Alewives

[Reel Chaos]

Anyone else seeing dead alewives along the shore?? 

[MCF]

Same issue on Lake Erie.   DEC says a normal event because of the first cold winter in a couple years.  I can remember springs back to the 1970s where similar events occurred, not every year.   

[GAMBLER]

They were all over the surface on Friday off Sandy.

[Gill-T]

I wonder how many of those are fish that made their way to shore are from the alewife survey. The fish that come aboard to be weighed do not live

[HB2]

They are lake wide .

 

I saw them a Wilson widespread 

 

The corrmerats didn't even want them 

 

I have t seen a dieoff like this in decades . 

[jperch]

It was hundreds (at least) times worse back in the seventies, absolutely disgusting. The perch spawn up north seemed more drawn out than usual, I wonder if the lake temperatures are a bit colder than normal.  We did have more ice than in recent years.

[GAMBLER]

2 hours ago, Gill-T said:

I wonder how many of those are fish that made their way to shore are from the alewife survey. The fish that come aboard to be weighed do not live

That was weeks ago.  These were freshly dead and some were still swirling.  

[UNREEL]

Didn’t see one  outta I-Bay today all the way to Webster park. Strange

[Yankee Troller]

They were on the bar last weekend, and this past Friday when I showed up to Wilson the harbor was loaded. Haven't see that in many years, but it used to be common. Not sure what it means.

[Hobo]

Aren’t they like shad after they spawn some of them die ?   To me it might be a good thing. 

[NETBOY101]

It'll keep the seagulls and the damn cormorains busy instead of eating those browns

[HB2]

Maybe Golden Corral can come get them , fry them up and put them out 

 

 

Yummy! 

[Trorun]

In the 70s across all of the Great Lakes it was a common occurrence. There are pictures of backhoes removing tons of them from the beaches in certain areas. It’s a natural occurrence according to the DEC

[Mr.Esox]

Usually during cold winters this happens thermal shock. Boyz !

[fishdawg]

Early May 2014 had a dieoff too

[LongLine]

It's been long known the well fed, well-nourished cold-blooded animals (fish, reptiles) can physically tolerate stress better than the less nourished.  I.E. They are more susceptible to thermal shock. The better fed will have more successful reproduction rates. 

 

If you look at the 2024 prey fish assessment, you'll see the Alewife" Condition Index was slightly better than the 2023 Index but both were well below the 2021 & 2022 Indexes. The lower food web in Lake Ontario is not what it used to be.

 

The spring weather has been very variable this year. Tribs like the Genny (warmer than the lake) have had 3-4 day periods where they've been "roaring" followed by same periods of only a trickle. We've had some bright/sunny periods followed by miserably cold spells.  There's also been some interesting wind shifts from west to east.  The wind driven currents in the lake moves areas of warm and cold water around quite a bit, especially in the near shore areas. 

 

Although schools of alewives move, they are not known as strong swimmers.  They can't outrun the quickly changing water temperatures and can't handle much temperature variation.  I.E. Thermal shock will kill them.

 

As to the 70's: Yes, the food web was much better and there were more alewives, but that decade's fall/winter weather was horrible.  Hurricane Agnes hit us in '72 and high water wiped out many cottages along the lake. There were heavy duty snowstorms along the southern shore, not in just the snow belts.  '70's were known for long cold winters where 70-80% of the lake typically froze over. Also, Ginna & Russel Station were in full operation. However, summers were nice, and alewife reproduction was very good.
 

[HB2]

Seems to me as I recall the dieoff was every year till the zebras showed up . Then the bait pop fell dramatically . 

 

The surface used to shimmer with silver for a few weeks this time of year annually. 

 

I remt the pics of front loaders and dump trucks on the east end .

 

Heck , that the reason the salmon are in the lake.  

 

Maybe it's a good thing as possibly it means a good pop of bait biomass . 

[Trorun]

For those interested in the health and history of the Great Lakes you would find this a very interesting book 

The Death and Life of the Great Lakes

Book by Dan Egan

 

Great easy read and explains the cycles and impacts of natural and man made influences on our fishery and this great natural resource 

[LongLine]

Zebra Mussels 1st found in Lake Ontario in 1988.  By the end of '89 they were found in all the Gr. Lakes.  Quagga mussels were identified as a different species in 1991, in Lake Erie.