PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • May 21, 2025
Mother Nature has surprised me lately, exceeding my expectations with her natural phenomena: First, there was last year’s total eclipse, then the Northern Lights and now, the alewives, which, if you hurry, you can still see making their way up Maine’s rivers and streams. Dams, pollution and other impediments in Maine’s rivers led to the species’ disappearance from some bodies of water for as many as hundreds of years. Recent recovery efforts — such as removing dams, installing fish passageways and stocking lakes — have worked so well, however, that they can now be fished in greater numbers. Make a point to get to your nearest alewife viewing site or make a plan to do it next spring. The perseverance of this fish, in the face of both physical and ecological hurdles, is something to behold. ~ Leslie Bridgers