The American shad (Alosa sapidissima) is a species of anadromous clupeid fish naturally distributed on the North American coast of the North Atlantic, from Newfoundland to Florida, and as an introduced species on the North Pacific coast. The American shad is not closely related to the other North American shads. Rather, it seems to form a lineage that diverged from a common ancestor of the European taxa before these diversified.[rx]
American shad, the largest member of the herring family, is wide considered the tastiest of the world’s 31 shad species; the species name (sapidissima) means “most delicious.” Shad is a seasonal novelty on restaurant menus, and shad bakes are a rite of spring in many Mid-Atlantic communities. John McPhee’s 2002 book The Founding Fish, which recounts a wealth of shad lore and eulogizes the fish’s role in America’s history, fueled a surge in the fish’s popularity with anglers and diners. Shad roe, the ripe eggs of the female fish, has been lauded as the “foie gras” of seafood. The species is anadromous, living at sea and migrating up rivers only to spawn. During spawning runs, fish are commercially caught with gillnets. Market size is typically is 3 to 5 pounds. Key fisheries are on the eastern U.S. coast, from Florida to Maine, with the biggest spawning runs in the Hudson River. Although shad is abundant along the Pacific Coast, there are no major commercial fisheries there due to concerns for native salmon. Dams, pollution, overfishing, and predation have decimated the East Coast commercial shad fishery. Restoration efforts, including the phase-out of coastal intercept fishing, are ongoing.
| American Shad Quick Facts | |
|---|---|
| Name: | American Shad |
| Scientific Name: | Alosa sapidissima |
| Origin | Native to Atlantic Coast |
| Colors | Blue and metallic |
| Shapes | Compressed, 76 cm long |
| Flesh colors | Raw: Grayish; Cooked: Pinkish beige to deep brown |
| Calories | 363 Kcal./cup |
| Major nutrients | Selenium (122.55%) Vitamin B3 (96.92%) Isoleucine (86.12%) Lysine (85.83%) Tryptophan (79.55%) |
Alosa sapidissima, commonly known as American shad, is an anadromous fish that belongs to the Clupeidae family and Alosa genus. In North America, there are other five species of shad yet Alosa sapidissima is closely associated with European than any of these. It is thought to have evolved from the ancestor of European radiation. It spends most of its life at sea consuming plankton and maturing in large schools. After 3 to 5 years, it makes a spring migration to spawn in their freshwater birth river. In North Carolina, most shad dies after spawning yet shad resides in more northern regions that migrate back to the ocean and return in subsequent years to spawn. Historically, the native range of American shad includes river systems from southern Labrador, Canada to Northern Florida, USA. This fish weighs 3 pounds (1.4 kg) and 8 pounds (3.6 kg) and possesses a delicate flavor when it is cooked. It is regarded to be flavorful enough that it does not require herbs, sauces, and spices. It could be fried, boiled, and filleted in butter or baked.
Description
American shad has a silver underbelly, dark blue to green above, and paler sides. There is a large dusky spot behind the upper edge of its gill cover which is followed by various small, less distinct, and dusky sports. It has a laterally compressed body with a deeply forked tail fin. The midline of its belly is sharp and saw-edged and its scales are large. It has only one anal fin and one dorsal fin. These are the largest members of the true herring family and could measure 30 inches long weighing over 9 pounds.
Predators
Its predators are birds, bears, and large fish such as smallmouth bass, striped bass, bluefish, and channel catfish.
Reproduction and Life Cycle
American shad are anadromous i.e. it lives in the ocean but spawns in freshwater rivers or streams. Adults migrate to the waterway in spring in which they were born to spawn. Female could lay 1, 00,000 to 6, 00,000 eggs. Eggs drift downstream & hatch in 7 to 10 days. Adults die or return to the ocean after spawning. Juveniles stay in nursery areas feeding on terrestrial insects and zooplankton. It has a lifespan of 6 to 10 years.
Habitat
American shad live in schools near shorelines. The populations which spawn on the Eastern Coast assemble off Maine, Massachusetts, and in the Bay of Fundy in summer and off Virginia, North Carolina, and Florida in winter.
Lifespan
American shad can live from 6 to 10 years in the wild and 9 years on average. Migration (from rivers to the sea) places a heavy toll on their bodies and increased migration promotes mortality. Migrating females have a 60 % average mortality rate during the seasons in which they migrate. American shad are anticipated to live 4 to 7 years (average 6 years) in captivity.
Diet
Juveniles are omnivores and their diet consists of insect larvae and zooplankton especially copepods and mysids. Once juveniles left spawning areas, they eat more once. As it gets older, American shad broadens diet including small fish, plankton, crustaceans, worms and fish eggs. During migration (in the late months of winter), shad consumes very little food. Thus, as the water temperatures increases in spring, its diet returns to normal.
History
Native Americans captured shad as a predominant food and European colonists used to keep barrels of salted shad in their homes. Shad was considered the savior fish during the Revolutionary War which fed George Washington’s troops after the harsh winter of 1778. The harvest of other herring and shad from the Potomac River added income Washington made on the plantation of Mount Vernon.
Over the 19th century, fishermen congregated to the region’s river for spring shad spawning runs. Often the fish were prepared through the planking method (tacking fish to wooden boards and smoking them to open fire). This tradition is honored by some communities that continue to hold festivals.
Spawning
- Spawning can occur as early as November in southern states and as late as July in New England and Canada.
- In Maryland, peak spawning time is mid-April through early June, with temperatures ranging from 55-68°F. Peak spawning temperature is 64°F.
- Depending on their geographical location, American shad may spawn once and die, or they may survive to make several spawning runs per lifetime. This “repeat” spawning in American shad differs according to latitude. Shad that spawn in more northerly rivers may survive to spawn several times; however, most American shad native to rivers south of Cape Fear, North Carolina, die after spawning. In Maryland, repeat spawning adult American shad account for 22-45% of the migrating adults.
- Spawning American shad females (ages 5 and 6) broadcast a large quantity of eggs (30,000 – 600,000) into the water column over several days; these eggs are fertilized by males (ages 4 and 5).
- Spawning usually occurs over gently sloping areas with fine gravel or sandy bottoms.
- After spawning, adult American shad return to the sea and migrate northward to their summer feeding grounds near the Gulf of Maine.
- Fertilized eggs are carried by river currents and hatch within 7-10 days.
- Larvae drift with the current until they mature into juveniles which remain in nursery areas, feeding on zooplankton and terrestrial insects.
- By late fall, most juvenile shad migrate to near-shore coastal wintering areas. Some juvenile American shad will remain in rivers and estuaries for up to a year before entering the ocean.
- Immature American shad will remain in the ocean for three to six years before returning to spawn.
- Adult and immature Americans shad overwinter along the mid-Atlantic coast, particularly from Maryland to North Carolina.
- American shad migrate back to their native rivers as water temperatures increase in the late winter and early spring.
Nutritional value of Fish, shad, American, cooked, dry heat
Calories 363 Kcal. Calories from Fat 228.78 Kcal.
| Proximity | Amount | % DV |
|---|---|---|
| Water | 85.28 g | N/D |
| Energy | 363 Kcal | N/D |
| Energy | 1518 kJ | N/D |
| Protein | 31.26 g | 62.52% |
| Total Fat (lipid) | 25.42 g | 72.63% |
| Ash | 2.43 g | N/D |
| Minerals | Amount | % DV |
|---|---|---|
| Calcium, Ca | 86 mg | 8.60% |
| Iron, Fe | 1.79 mg | 22.38% |
| Magnesium, Mg | 55 mg | 13.10% |
| Phosphorus, P | 503 mg | 71.86% |
| Potassium, K | 708 mg | 15.06% |
| Sodium, Na | 94 mg | 6.27% |
| Zinc, Zn | 0.68 mg | 6.18% |
| Copper, Cu | 0.118 mg | 13.11% |
| Manganese, Mn | 0.078 mg | 3.39% |
| Selenium, Se | 67.4 µg | 122.55% |
| Vitamins | Amount | % DV |
|---|---|---|
| Water-soluble Vitamins | ||
| Vitamin B1 (Thiamin) | 0.264 mg | 22.00% |
| Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin) | 0.444 mg | 34.15% |
| Vitamin B3 (Niacin) | 15.507 mg | 96.92% |
| Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic acid) | 1.246 mg | 24.92% |
| Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine) | 0.665 mg | 51.15% |
| Vitamin B9 (Folate) | 24 µg | 6.00% |
| Folate, food | 24 µg | N/D |
| Folate, DEF | 24 µg | N/D |
| Vitamin B-12 (Cobalamine) | 0.2 µg | 8.33% |
| Fat-soluble Vitamins | ||
| Vitamin A, RAE | 52 µg | 7.43% |
| Vitamin A, IU | 173 IU | N/D |
| Retinol | 52 µg | N/D |
| Lipids | Amount | % DV |
|---|---|---|
| Fatty acids, total polyunsaturated | ||
| Cholesterol | 138 mg | N/D |
| Amino acids | Amount | % DV |
|---|---|---|
| Tryptophan | 0.35 g | 79.55% |
| Threonine | 1.371 g | 77.90% |
| Isoleucine | 1.44 g | 86.12% |
| Leucine | 2.54 g | 68.72% |
| Lysine | 2.87 g | 85.83% |
| Methionine | 0.924 g | N/D |
| Cystine | 0.336 g | N/D |
| Phenylalanine | 1.22 g | N/D |
| Tyrosine | 1.056 g | N/D |
| Valine | 1.61 g | 76.23% |
| Arginine | 1.871 g | N/D |
| Histidine | 0.92 g | 74.68% |
| Alanine | 1.891 g | N/D |
| Aspartic acid | 3.201 g | N/D |
| Glutamic acid | 4.666 g | N/D |
| Glycine | 1.5 g | N/D |
| Proline | 1.104 g | N/D |
| Serine | 1.276 g | N/D |
*Above mentioned Percent Daily Values (%DVs) are based on 2,000 calorie diet intake. Daily values (DVs) may be different depending upon your daily calorie needs. Mentioned values are recommended by a U.S. Department of Agriculture. They are not healthbenefitstimes.com recommendations. Calculations are based on average age of 19 to 50 years and weigh 194 lbs. Source: https://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ 
How to Eat
- Shad is used fresh, smoked, or salted.
- Roe is consumed broiled, fried, and baked.
- It is boiled, filleted & fried in butter, and baked.
- Usually, fillets are baked or broiled.
- Shad roe is sautéed in butter or cooked in white wine.
Where to fish
If you want to catch shad in Washington, the place to fish is the Columbia River. And if you’re fishing from shore, the only sure-fire location is below Bonneville Dam. The popular fishery at Camas Slough is mostly a boat show outside the entrance to the slough, although some shad are taken from the steamboat landing dock (in Washougal), where there is limited access.
To find good shoreline access, travel east on Highway 14 about two miles past the town of North Bonneville. Here are four specific sites to try in the Bonneville area:
- The northside shoreline below Second Powerhouse Dam: Start at the deadline and work the shoreline a few hundred yards downstream.
- Transmission towers: A good spot to try when the water is high.
- Boat ramp area: Downstream from the Hamilton Island boat ramp to the end of the access road, try any little point or eddy. Walking upstream from the boat ramp, there is about a three-block piece of shoreline with good spots all along.
- Below John Day Dam: Some shore access is available between Maryhill Park and John Day Dam. Access is primitive, however.
Other Facts
- They are the largest member of the herring fish family.
- The term sapidissima refers to the most savory and most delicious.
- It is found along the east coast of North America from Newfoundland to Florida and is most abundant from Connecticut to North Carolina.
- Most of the time, they live in coastal ocean waters but they migrate back to rivers every year where they hatched to spawn.
- During its lifetime, shad swim over 12000 miles.
- The recorded largest American shad is about 2 feet and 6 inches long.
- In Maryland, the oldest American shad recorded was 11 years old.
- In the Chesapeake Bay region, shad roe is regarded as a delicacy.
Precautions
- The consumption of sea fish if one is trying to reduce inflammatory diseases such as heart disease.
- Farmed ones contain arsenic that leads to arsenic poisoning.
- Farmed seafood results in to increase in inflammation leading to weight gain, arthritis, and heart diseases.
- The imbalance ratio of Omega-6 and Omega-3 causes heart disease and hypertension.
- Seafood and fish in farms have polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), organophosphorus (OPs), organochlorine (OC), trifluralin pesticides, and hexachlorobenzene (HCB) causing diseases or even death.
- The seafood has a high content of mercury, which may lead to mercury toxicity.
- Consume it in moderate amounts.
- Consult the doctor by pregnant women and children before consuming it. Children and pregnant women should avoid it because the high content of mercury might cause a negative impact on the development of the nervous system of a fetus.
References
