Alewife River Herring

THESE HERRINGS ARE PROTECTED AND THEIR CONSUMPTION IS PROHIBITED. Alewife river herring is an American fish with a pale white, silvery body and blue-black back. Its flavor is briny and its roe is delectable. Unfortunately, in New England's coastal regions, its natural habitat, the population of this species has been on the decline due to climate change, overfishing, and degraded water quality.

In recent years, there have been some actions to restore the population of these herrings, such as building fish ladders around dams. From 2016, the fish has been protected and shoudn't be consumed until the population stabilizes, and hopefully in the future it will once again be present on kitchen plates in New England households.