Community Corner

Children Help Assess the Hudson River's Health

Local children and organizations from New York City to Albany got the chance to meet the residents of the Hudson River, while acting as scientists to help assess the well being of the estuary.

More than 20 families participated in the fish count at the Kathryn W. Davis RiverWalk Center in Sleepy Hollow last month where participants caught Hudson River fish in nets, as the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation tabulated the results over the phone.

“This is the second year that the DEC has hosted the fish count along the river,” reads a press release from Teatown Lake Reserve in Ossining, one of the organizations that participated in the event. “Through this initiative, they hope to gain a better understanding of the diversity of the various fish inhabiting the river and compare the fish populations year after year in urban settings, as well as those in more rural settings to assess the river’s overall health.”

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There are more than 200 species of fish—like the American eel, spot tail shiner, stripped bass and more—that live in the river. The community seining at RiverWalk Center in Sleepy Hollow yielded bay anchovy, mummicho, white perch and blue fish. 

The kinds of fish that showed up the most were the Atlantic menhaden (145), striped bass (97) and spot tail shiner (88).

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The river’s lower estuary serves as a crucial habitat for fish that acts as a nursery with lots of plant growth that support the mass amount of tiny invertebrates that the fish eat.

In addition to the seine and getting to splash around knee-dip in the river while learning about the estuary, kids enjoyed an art workshop by Strawtown Studio. Participants got to take home their own creations using natural pigments and crushed sandstone from the Hudson River’s shores.

 


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