May 24, 2023 — Fishermen and regulators call the return of alewife runs in Maine a success story.
In the ’80s, the fishery was all but gone. Dams and overfishing drove the migratory fish, that lives in the ocean and returns to ponds to spawn, out of the playbook for lobstermen bait.
But now with regulations by the Maine Department of Marine Resources and the removal of dams throughout Maine streams, the alewife is now running better than the last few decades.