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Please Renew Your Membership or Become a Member
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You may sign up for an annual fee of $35
by going to our website.
Or checks may be mailed to:
Friends of Herring River
P.O. Box 496
Wellfleet, MA 02667
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Masthead photo by Lisbeth Wiley
Chapman, Peter Watts photo by Don Palladino,
Herring photo by Lisbeth Wiley chapman
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This is Annual Meeting month and we have an information packed program for you on Tuesday, August 16th at 4:00 PM, Wellfleet Council on Aging. Lisbeth Wiley Chapman, Editor beth@friendsofherringriver.org |
FRIENDS OF HERRING RIVER ANNUAL MEETING
TUESDAY, AUGUST 16, 4:00 PM AT WELLFLEET COUNCIL ON AGING | | The Friends of Herring River Annual Meeting will feature a presentation detailing the benefits of the Herring River restoration to the community, water quality, and health of Wellfleet Harbor and Cape Cod Bay. A panel of members of the Herring River Restoration Committee will be on hand for a question and answer session.
A new Herring River Restoration Project Newsletter, detailing the final Environmental Impact Study (EIS) alternatives, will be distributed.
The meeting begins at 4:00 PM with a very brief business meeting of the Friends of Herring River and the election of three board of director members and officers.
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Peter Watts Envisions the Herring River Estuary
| | Artist Peter Watts will exhibit his Herring River Estuary painting at
the August 16 Annual Meeting. Prints of the painting will be available for $50 and Peter will personally sign yours at the conclusion of the meeting. They are 20" x 24" and the funds raised will support the Friends of Herring River.
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VIDEO PROJECT: RETURN OF THE TIDES
THE IMPORTANCE OF TIDAL RIVERS
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Friends of Herring River is planning to produce an engaging 20-30 minute documentary video that raises public awareness about tidal wetlands and looks at the Herring River Estuary, the largest salt-marsh estuary complex on Cape Cod, as a case study to mobilize public support for its ecological restoration. A comprehensive educational video of this scope does not exist. The benefits will include the following: · Explain the human values of tidal wetlands on a global scale. · Show the adverse effects of human alterations of tidal wetlands/salt marshes throughout the US coastal zone over the past 350 years. · Detail the story of the Herring River estuary where research and planning is well under way for the largest tidal restoration project yet undertaken in New England. · Bring the salt marsh estuary alive for viewers by showcasing its natural beauty and diversity. · Enhance and improve community life through a new found understanding and appreciation for the natural world. The video will be an excellent way to inform the public about why protecting the environment and protecting tidal rivers is such an important mission. If you can help us fund the creation of the video, please contact Don Palladino at info@friendsofherringriver.org for an in-person explanation and overview of where we are in our video project planning at this time.
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PHOTOGRAPHERS: WE NEED YOUR PICS
| | | We would appreciate any photographs or stories about the Herring River that we could incorporate in our website, newsletter and upcoming projects. Contact us at info@friendsofherringriver.org |
 2011 Herring Count Report
| | Dr. JoAnn Muramoto, Association to Preserve Cape Cod, and her team have analyzed our spring 2011 herring count data. This year's count covered more time slots than in previous years, thanks to the zeal of our citizen scientists. Nonetheless, we find that our estimated count is down. In 2011, the count was nearly 8000 herring, compared to 13,000 in 2010 and 17,000 in 2009. We do not know if this change is due to local causes or global issues, such as a decline in overall herring populations.
We also believe we have an important evening run, not uncommon on the Cape, and our count hours did not extend into that time frame. We are planning to count again, and perhaps start much earlier next year, as there is also a possibility that some herring return in March. As citizen scientists, we need to do our best to get an accurate estimate of our herring and elver populations. There were many sightings of elvers, but as we were not charged with counting elvers, we have no idea how this compares to earlier count years. This could be a second project for 2012.
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The Great Menhaden Debate
| | Menhaden are under assault and their health impacts our Herring and Striper populations. Here's what is going on....
The Menhaden debate of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Council (ASMFC) may have an impact on our herring population. You may know that the Atlantic Menhaden Management Board has approved Draft Addendum V to Amendment 1 to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Menhaden for public comment. The Draft Addendum proposes establishing a new interim fishing mortality threshold and target (based on maximum spawning potential or MSP) with the goal of increasing abundance, spawning stock biomass, and menhaden availability as a forage species.
This has been a goal for years, but Omega Protein, a large, Virginia-based reduction industry company, has opposed it with a great deal of money and lobbying. Finally, environmental groups and citizens have put enough pressure on the ASMFC to look at the loss of Menhaden stock biomass seriously as to its impact on other marine species. When Menhaden stocks are down as seriously as they are now, larger species of fish, such as the Striped Bass will naturally feed on herring - stressing an already depleted resource.
States will be conducting hearings on the Draft Addendum; the details of those hearings will be released when they become available. Restoring Atlantic Menhaden to their former abundance can only help the many predator groups that depend on them, taking some of the pressure off of the herring population. To follow this issue, go to ASMFC http://www.asmfc.org, NCMC, http://www.savethefish.org/ or menhaden@downcaperealty.com, for John Duane's local perspective.
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