While the unusual early return of blueback herring and alewives to the coastal rivers and streams is making news this month, there’s another aquatic migrant that deserves our attention—one whose journey from sea to freshwater and back is no less remarkable than that of the aforementioned river herring.
TOM RICHARDSON: I had never seen elvers in the flesh until I was checking out a local herring run in late March and I noticed some in the freshwater pond above dam. Maybe I had never really looked for them, but the more I looked, the more elvers I saw. Every minute or so, one of the 3”-long, flagellate-like animals would wriggle through in the tea-colored water, occasionally scooting in to hide among the mossy vegetation that grew on the rocks.
I returned the next day, intent on capturing a few of the critters with a dipnet. This proved difficult, however, as elvers turn out to be very fast and very slippery. This should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with adult American eels—perhaps the slimiest creatures on earth next to hagfish.
See the video from YouTube at Boating Local.