With new efforts to improve fish passage, Maine is seeing a record number of river herring in 2024

MAINE PUBLIC • July 5, 2024

Scientists say many more alewives and blueback herring have made their way into Maine's waterways this year — a recovery they attribute to dam removals and habitat restoration. Sean Ledwin, the director of the Bureau of Sea-Run Fisheries and Habitat at the the Maine Department of Marine Resources, said more than 6 million fish have been counted at Benton Falls, along the Sebasticook River (a tributary of the Kennebec River) — far more than last year. More than 3 million have been counted at China Lakes. “Probably 15, 20 million alewives in that river system." Ledwin expects alewife counts to continue to grow, thanks to $70 million in new federal funds to remove more dams and improve habitat across the state.