{{Short description|Species of fish}} {{Speciesbox | name = ''Alosa mediocris'' | image = Alosa mediocris (S0512) (12599883825).jpg | image_caption = | taxon = Alosa mediocris | authority = (Mitchill, 1814) | status = LC | status_system = IUCN3.1 | status_ref = <ref>{{cite iucn |author=NatureServe |date=2013 |title=''Alosa mediocris'' |article-number=e.T201947A2731015 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-1.RLTS.T201947A2731015.en |access-date=27 August 2023}}</ref> | synonyms = ''Clupea mediocris'' (Mitchill, 1814)<br/> ''Pomolobus mediocris'' (Mitchill, 1814)<br/> ''Clupea mattowaca'' (Mitchill, 1815)<br/> ''Clupea viridescens'' (DeKay, 1842) | synonyms_ref = <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.fishbase.se/Nomenclature/SynonymsList.php?ID=1582&SynCode=23333&GenusName=Alosa&SpeciesName=mediocris|title=Synonyms of ''Alosa mediocris'' (Mitchill, 1814)|website=FishBase|access-date=31 December 2022|date=5 August 2014|author=dsantos}}</ref> }}
The '''hickory shad''' (''Alosa mediocris''), '''fall herring''', '''mattowacca''',<ref name="merriamwebster">{{Cite Merriam-Webster|mattowacca|access-date=3 December 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Cuvier|first1=B.|last2=Valenciennes|first2=A.|language=French|pages=371–374|title=Histoire Naturelle des Poissons|year=1847|publisher=P. Bertrand|location=Paris|volume=20|url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/4443312|access-date=31 December 2022|via=Biodiversity Heritage Library}}</ref>{{efn|Also matowacca or mattowaca, from an unknown, but possibly southeastern<ref name="merriamwebster"/> Algonquian language}} '''freshwater taylor''' or '''bonejack'''<ref>{{ITIS|id=161704|taxon=''Alosa mediocris''|access-date=31 December 2022}}</ref> is a member of the family Alosidae, ranging along the East Coast of the United States from Florida to the Gulf of Maine. It is an anadromous fish species, meaning that it spawns in freshwater portions of rivers, but spends most of its life at sea. It is subject to fishing, both historic and current, but it is often confused with or simply grouped together with American shad (''A. sapidissima'') in catch statistics.
==Description== Hickory shad are elongate, laterally compressed fish with a tapering cross section.<ref name=vdwr>{{cite web |title=Virginia Fishes: Hickory Shad|website=Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources|url=https://dwr.virginia.gov/wildlife/fish/hickory-shad/|access-date=3 December 2022|year=2022}}</ref> The scales on the belly are serrated.<ref name=chesapeakebayp>{{cite web |url=https://www.chesapeakebay.net/discover/field-guide/entry/hickory-shad|website=Chesapeake Bay Program|title=Hickory Shad|access-date=3 December 2022|year=2022}}</ref> The fish is green-gray on its upper surface, becoming iridescent silver on the sides and white below.<ref name=chesapeakebayp/><ref name=jacobs>{{multiref2|{{cite web |url=https://portal.ct.gov/deep/fishing/freshwater/freshwater-fishes-of-connecticut/hickory-shad|title=Hickory Shad (''Alosa mediocris'') - Native|website=Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection|access-date=3 December 2022|date=2022}}|Adapted from {{cite book |title= A Pictorial Guide to the Freshwater Fishes of Connecticut |date=2009 |last1=Jacobs |first1=Robert P. |last2=O'Donnell |first2=Eileen B. |isbn=978-0-942085-15-0 |publisher=Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection }}}}</ref> The scales bear small dark markings.<ref name=vdwr/> A humeral spot is present and is frequently followed by a short series of fainter spots.<ref name=jacobs/> The hickory shad can be distinguished from American shad by its lower jaw, which will project beyond the snout in the hickory shad.<ref>{{cite web|title=American or Hickory? ID your Shad Catch|last=McCrickard|first=Alex|website=Notes from the Field Blog|publisher=Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources|url=https://dwr.virginia.gov/blog/american-or-hickory-id-your-shad-catch/|access-date=3 December 2022|date=14 April 2022}}</ref>
==Distribution, habitat, and life history== thumb|A female hickory shad Hickory shad range from northern Florida to the Gulf of Maine. The largest populations occur in Chesapeake Bay and coastal North Carolina.<ref name="mun" >Munroe, T.A. (2002) Herrings. Family Clupeidae. In: Bigelow and Schroeder's Fishes of the Gulf of Maine. B. B. Collette and G. Klein-MacPhee (Eds.). Smithsonian Institution Press.</ref> It is a schooling anadromous species that inhabits marine waters, probably never far from land. Adults enter estuaries and freshwater tributaries from the St. John's River, Florida,<ref>{{cite web |title=Discover Fishes: Hickory Shad|website=Florida Museum|date=19 August 2022|url=https://www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/discover-fish/florida-fishes-gallery/hickory-shad/|access-date=3 December 2022}}</ref> to the Patuxent River, Maryland, to spawn during the spring. Their oceanic movements are poorly documented.<ref name="hardy">Jones, P.W., Martin, F.D. and Hardy Jr., J.D. 1978. Development of fishes of the Mid-Atlantic bight: An atlas of egg, larval and juvenile stages; Acipenseridae through Ictaluridae. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Volume 1:84-88. {{LCCN|77-86193}}.</ref><ref name="Cooper" >Cooper, E.L. 1983. Fishes of Pennsylvania and the Northeastern United States. Penn State University Press, University Park and London. pp. 47–50. {{isbn|0271003375}}.</ref><ref name="Rulifson, R.A 1994. pp. 134">Rulifson, R.A. 1994. Status of anadromous Alosa along the East Coast of North America. Anadromous Alosa symposium. Tidewater Chapter, American Fisheries Society. pp. 134–158.</ref>
Spawning occurs from December to June, earliest in Florida and later with increasing latitude.<ref name="hardy" /><ref name="harris07">Harris, Julianne E., R. S. McBride, and R. O. Williams. 2007. Life history of hickory shad in the St. Johns River, Florida. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society. 136(6): 1463–1471. {{doi|10.1577/T06-187.1}}.</ref> The slightly adhesive and demersal eggs, about 1 mm in diameter, appear to be dispersed at random over gravel bars in moderate current. After water hardening, the eggs become semibuoyant and develop as they drift along the bottom.<ref name="hardy" /><ref name="Cooper"/><ref name="mans" >Mansueti, R.J. 1962. Eggs, larvae, and young of the hickory shad, ''Alosa mediocris'', with comments on its ecology in the estuary. Chesapeake Science 3: 173–205.</ref> Fecundity ranges from 43,000 – 475,000 eggs per female, and although the developmental stages of eggs, larvae, and juveniles have been described, little is known concerning the distribution, ecology, and growth rates of these early life stages.<ref name="hardy" /><ref name="mans" />
Hickory shad live to seven years.<ref name="harris07"/> Both sexes mature starting at 2 years of age and can repeat spawn.<ref name="harris07"/><ref name="rulifson">{{cite journal |last1=Rulifson|first1=Roger A.|last2=Batsavage|first2=Christopher F.|title=Population demographics of Hickory Shad (''Alosa mediocris'') during a period of population growth|journal=Fishery Bulletin|volume=112|issue=2–3|year=2014|pages=221–236|doi=10.7755/FB.112.2-3.8|doi-access=free}}</ref> Females are larger than males; in Florida, the average female is {{convert|37|cm|in}} fork length and the average male is {{convert|34|cm|in}} fork length.<ref name="harris07" />
Hickory shad are piscivorous, feeding primarily on small fishes, although crustaceans and squid contribute to their diet.<ref name="mun" /><ref name="Cooper" /> One study from Florida showed that their diet on the spawning grounds was almost exclusively fish (97% by weight),<ref name="harris07" /> but feeding is limited during the freshwater migration<ref name="harris07"/><ref name="rulifson"/> and mesenteric fat reserves developed prior to migration are metabolized en route.<ref name="rulifson"/>
==Relationship with humans==
===Recreational fishery=== {{See also|Shad fishing}} Hickory shad have a relatively low commercial value, but an increasingly popular recreational fishery exists throughout the mid-Atlantic states. By the late 1980s and early 1990s, hickory shad articles appeared in sport-fishing magazines. Headlines such as "the tough fighting hickory shad swarm near the rock-studded fall line…"<ref>''Sports Afield''. March 1988. Rappahannock shad. 199(3):70.</ref> and "feast on Rappahannock River hickory shad action" <ref>Field & Stream. April 1992. Feast on Rappahannock River hickory shad action. 96(12):70A.</ref> brought attention to the fishery. Subsequently, specialty magazines<ref>Fly Fisherman. September 2002. Shad restoration continues. 33(6):27.</ref> and sports sections in national newspapers<ref>The Washington Post. April 3, 1988. Hickory Shad are Running! Sports section, pp. c. 16.; May 11, 2000. Md. Welcomes back the shad; biologists touting victory for rivers' spawning program. pg. b. 01.</ref> began proclaiming the excitement of hickory shad fishing ("HICKORY SHAD ARE RUNNING!") and the recovery of the fishery. In the two most recent years of a North Carolina creel survey (2004–2005), hickory shad – a fish only present for two months of the year – moved from sixth- to the fourth-most targeted fish by coastal anglers.<ref>Murauskas, J.G. and D.G. Mumford. 2006. North Carolina cooperative striped bass creel survey in the central and southern management area (CSMA). Grant F-79, Seg. 2. N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Division of Marine Fisheries, Morehead City, North Carolina.</ref> They are also taken by recreational fishing for use as bait to catch larger fish.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Daniello |first1=Capt. Vincent |title=A Guide to Saltwater Live Baits |url=https://www.sportfishingmag.com/guide-to-saltwater-live-baits/ |website=sportfishingmag.com |date=13 May 2019 |publisher=Sport Fishing Magazine |access-date=21 June 2019}}</ref>
==Literature== Most information about this species is contained in federal and state documents and management plans or theses from universities. Federal publications include reports from the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission's (ASMFC) Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Shad and River Herring.<ref>ASMFC. 1999. Fisheries Management Report No. 35. Amendment 1 to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Shad and River Herring. 1444 Eye St. NW, Washington, DC.</ref><ref>ASMFC. 2001. Review of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission Fishery Management Plan for Shad and River Herring (Alosa sp.). 1444 Eye St. NW, Washington, DC.</ref> Prominent publications by state agencies include reports based on fishery monitoring programs in Connecticut,<ref>Gephard, S. and J. McMenemy. 2004. An overview of the program to restore Atlantic salmon and other diadromous fishes to the Connecticut River with notes on the current status of these species in the river. American Fisheries Society monograph No. 9, pp. 287–317.</ref> Pennsylvania and Maryland,<ref>Chesapeake Bay Agreement. 2000. The Renewed Bay Agreement. Retrieved May 26, 2006. http://dnrweb.dnr.state.md.us/bay/res_protect/c2k/index.asp {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040218205210/http://dnrweb.dnr.state.md.us/bay/res_protect/c2k/index.asp |date=2004-02-18 }}[</ref> North Carolina,<ref>NCDMF and NCWRC. 2004. Shad and River Herring Fisheries and Monitoring Programs in North Carolina – 2003: Report to the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission Shad and River Herring Technical Committee. Raleigh, North Carolina.</ref> South Carolina, Georgia,<ref>Street, M.W. and J.G. Adams. 1969. Aging of hickory shad and blueback herring in Georgia by the scale method. Contribution Series No. 18. Georgia Game and Fish Commission, Marine Fisheries Division.</ref><ref>Street, M.W. 1969. Fecundity of the hickory shad in the Altamaha River, Georgia. Contribution Series No. 14. Georgia Game and Fish Commission, Marine Fisheries Division.</ref><ref>Ulrich, G., N. Chipley, J.W. McCord, D. Cupka, J.L. Music, and R.K. Manhood. 1979. Development of fishery management plans for selected anadromous fishes in South Carolina and Georgia. South Carolina Wildlife and Marine Resources Department, Charleston, South Carolina.</ref> and Florida.<ref>McBride, R.S. 2000. Florida's shad and river herrings (Alosa species): A review of population and fishery characteristics. Florida Marine Research Institute Technical Reports No. 5.</ref><ref>Harris, J., and R. McBride. 2004. A review of the potential effects of water level fluctuation on diadromous fish populations for MFL determinations. St. John's River Water Management District, Contract No. SG346AA. Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.</ref><ref name="harris07" /><ref>McBride, Richard S., and Jay C. Holder (2008). A Review and Updated Assessment of Florida's Anadromous Shads: American Shad and Hickory Shad. North American Journal of Fisheries Management. 28(6): 1668–1686. {{doi|10.1577/M07-066.1}}.</ref><ref>McBride, Richard S., and Richard E. Matheson. (2011). Florida's diadromous fishes: biology, ecology, conservation, and management. Florida Scientist. 74(3): 187–213.</ref> A few publications address coast-wide and/or genus-level stock status and management issues.<ref name="Rulifson, R.A 1994. pp. 134"/><ref>Yako, L.A., M.E. Mather, and F. Juanes. 2002. Mechanisms for migration of anadromous herring: an ecological basis for effective conservation. Ecological Applications 12(2):521-534.</ref> The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service published a useful series that includes egg, larvae, and juvenile development descriptions of hickory shad.<ref name="hardy" /> A recent review of hickory shad in Chesapeake Bay places management of this species in an ecosystem context.<ref>Alosine Species Team. (2011). Alosine Species Team Background and Issues Briefs. In: Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management for Chesapeake Bay.(https://web.archive.org/web/20120623223223/http://www.mdsg.umd.edu/images/uploads/siteimages/00-Alosines_Briefs-FINAL.pdf)</ref> Three master of science theses also studied them.<ref>Pate, P.P. 1972. Life history aspects of the hickory shad, Alosa mediocris (Mitchell), in the Neuse River, North Carolina. M.S. Thesis, North Carolina State University. Raleigh, North Carolina.</ref><ref>Batsavage, C.F. 1997. Life history aspects of the hickory shad (Alosa mediocris) in the Albemarle Sound/Roanoke River Watershed, North Carolina. M.S. Thesis, East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina.</ref><ref>Watkinson, E.R. 2004. Age, growth, and fecundity of hickory shad (Alosa mediocris) in Virginia coastal river. M.S. thesis. Virginia Commonwealth University. Richmond, Virginia.</ref>
Although hickory shad research has been limited, other clupeids, especially ''Alosa'' species in the United States, have received more attention.<ref name="lim" >Limburg, K.E. and J.R. Waldman, editors. 2003. Biodiversity, status, and conservation of the world's shads. American Fisheries Society Symposium 35. Bethesda, Maryland.</ref>
==Notes== {{Notelist}}
== References == {{Reflist}}
==External links== {{Refbegin}} * {{Commons category-inline|Alosa mediocris}} {{Refend}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q659295}} {{Authority control}}
Category:Alosa Category:Game fish Category:Fish described in 1814