Watch the Mill River herring in action

The Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF) continues to catch Mill River herring and other resident fish on underwater video camera upstream from the Hopewell Mills Dam Removal site.  The first video shows river herring posing for the camera as they consider whether or not to swim into the monitoring trap.  The second video shows a trout (possibly eastern brook trout?) heading downstream.  Thanks to DMF's Mike Bednarski and Brad Chase for  this great monitoring project, funded by DMF, The Nature Conservancy, and NOAA's Open Rivers Initiative.

The Fish are Back!

After 200 years, river herring have been spotted in the Mill River above the Hopewell Mills dam. The Division of Marine Fisheries recently set up a video monitoring station at Reed and Barton, and have been recording a stream of video footage. Many fish use the river, and from what has been reviewed, these fish include yellow perch, chain pickerel, trout and our first river herring!

Because this is a large project that includes removal of three dams and building a fish ladder, it provides a perfect opportunity to study the response of this river system to restoration efforts. Monitoring will continue with each removal, and a monitoring system will be put in place at the fish ladder as well. We will post video when it becomes available, and will continue to provide updates of fish sightings. For now, we are looking forward to seeing the new channel when grass begins to grow.