Age, growth, and fecundity of hickory shad (Alosa mediocris ) in Virginia coastal rivers

Little is known about the life history of hickory shad (Alosa mediocris), especially in Virginia. Dramatic declines of hickory shad occurred in the late 1970s; however, there has been an increase in the spawning population in Virginia since the late 1990s. The goal of this study was to study life history characteristics of hickory shad and compare these characteristics to American shad to better explain recovery and aid management of the species. Fish examined in this study were collected in 2001 from the Rappahannock and James River drainages, Virginia, and males and females were separated for analysis. A nested analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare hickory shad fork length, total mass, somatic mass, age, gonadosomatic index, individual fecundity and relative fecundity between drainages. Otolith and scale ageing techniques were evaluated for accuracy and compared to those of hickory shad in other studies as well as other Alosa species. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)...