Landsat image of the lower-reach of the Connecticut River in western Massachusetts and Connecticut. The location of the Holyoke Dam
at South Hadley Falls is indicated with the white arrow. Holyoke Dam creates an impoundment (barely discernible in this Landsat image)
that is known as the Holyoke Pool. Despite the presence of a fish lifting facility at Holyoke Dam, the Connecticut River population of
shortnose sturgeon, Acipenser brevirostrum has been effectively divided since construction of the first dam at this site in the 1840s. The
spawning site for the downstream stock of sturgeon is located immediately below Holyoke Dam. Sturgeons restricted to the Holyoke
Pool spawn several kilometers above the dam at what is probably the historic spawning site for the entire Connecticut River population
(see Kynard 1997 this volume). Image courtesy of Curtice Griffin and the New England Gap Analysis Program (scale bar= 30 km).
Comments by W.E. Bemis: also see Bemis & Kynard (1997 this volume).
martin jones
(Martin Jones)
#1