Quinte Fishing

does anyone know if the shad come in from the lake in the fall to spawn in the harbour? do shad spawn in the fall, and if so do they spend the winter in the bay or go back out after spawning, i figure learning their habits will help me understand the activities of some of their friends, thankx. (we haven't been marking many baitfish lately)

Hi Steve,
There was an attempt to stock American Shad in L. Ontario which failed.
There is an annual run of these anadromus (spawn once and die) fish
up the Ottawa River but they are rare and/or not present in L. Ontario.

What you are seeing in the bay are young Gizzard Shad (Dorosoma cepedima), a member of the herring family. These fish are planktivorous
herbivores (interestingly, so are zebra mussels).

Mature in 2-3 years, weighing approx. .5 kilo, they spawn in June and
July in water temps of 16 to 25 celcius. Females may lay anywhere from
20,000 to 1/2 million eggs.

Thus, the shad you are seeing in late fall/early winter ( 3 inchers) are probably approx. 6 months old or 18 months if they are in the 6/8 inch
range. They are looking for food and their activity this time of yr.
has nothing to do with spawning.

Hope I could be of help. Love to answer questions of this sort.

Me & my buddy went out ice fishing the other day @ Potters, when walking out we saw what looked like shad, frozen in the ice.Not just a couple I mean like tons of them.Anybody have any ideas why.

Hi tdoug.
Young shad are particularly vulnerable to temperature stress/shock.
Typically less than 1% of this summers fish will survive till spring
due to the winter dieoff and being eaten!!! An unusually mild winter will ensure the survival of more young of year fish.
Will be glad to answer any questions of this sort if I can.
Happy New Year, Wulf.