Herring in the Farmill River.

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On Sunday I was fishing the Farmill, and my last stop was the section down near Rt 110. I caught several nice rainbow and brown trout, but even more exciting, was the sight of thousands of herring swimming up the entire southern stretch of the Farmill river. The herring are in the river spawning, and it was just amazing to see them everywhere I looked, and occasionally seeing water erupt with fish as they perform this seasonal ritual.

As you may know, the Atlantic herring is a protected species, and having clean flowing freshwater streams for them to reproduce in is essential to the health of the herring. Herring are an important link in the Atlantic Ocean’s food chain. So many species depend on the schools of herring to stay alive, especially humans.

Thanks to the work of the Land Trust, the Farmill is still a healthy habitat for these magnificent fish to complete their life cycle. The Land Trust’s holdings reach far beyond the physical land, and the town of Shelton, they influence the entire ecosystem of Long Island Sound and the north east ocean. If you take a walk down to the river in Pine Rock Park, you probably still be able to see these fish for a few days.

Fish on

Dave Edgeworth