Salmon get tons of fame and admiration for their epic, sex-crazed journeys up mighty rivers during spawning season, but the unsung shad may be even more devoted to answering the underwater booty call: While salmon make their spawning runs only once in their lives, an individual shad can do it several times.
Shad recently began their spawning runs on the East Coast and, if a recent trend continues, there will be more than there were last year. Since the Clean Water Act’s passage, shad are returning to many rivers where they had been pushed out by pollution. The shad’s elated human fans are celebrating at various shad fests (really).
This nice radio story highlights the return of the shad to Philadelphia’s rivers, particularly. With Earth Day coming right up, it’s a heart-warming little tale of eco-success. Not everything’s doom and gloom!
