What can you tell me about Shad?

Question

You know, the fish?? Articles and links to sites are great, but what I really want are some facts. If you give me a good summary paragraph about shad, that's worth 10 points!

Thanks a lot and no, this isn't homework, it's for a volunteer project about Shad. I'd just like to know more about them.

Answer 1

shad that im familiar with are found in most lakes & are netted or caught & used for cat fish bait. you can also watch for gulls feeding on shad to know where fish are feeding, go there to catch lots of sand bass.

Answer 2

Last year, the NYS record for Shad was broken. On the northern end of the Hudson River an angler nabbed a 8 1/2 pound shad. Shads are found in salt, fresh, and brackish waters. They are related to the herring and mossbunker family, yet they are predators feeding on spearing and small baitfish. As far as fighting, they put up a good one, usually jumping out of the water when hooked.

Answer 3

Gizzard shad exhibit the typical herring body shape with a wide body that is stocky in nature. Color ranges from bright silvery blue-green on the back, silvery sides and a dull white belly. A dark shoulder spot is common on younger fish but may be absent from adults. The front of the head is rounded with a subterminal mouth.Bottom jaw or lip is not very strong. Teeth are absent. There are about 190 rakers on the lower limb of the first gill arch. The eyes have adipose eyelids with vertical slits. Body scales are cycloid with no lateral line present. The ventral scales are keeled. Dorsal fin rays number 10 to 12 with the last ray elongated into a thin whiplike filament. This fin is inserted slightly behind the pelvic fin. An auxiliary process is present at the base of the pelvic fin. The anal fin has 27 to 34 rays, and the caudal fin is deeply forked.

Answer 4

When you see a school of shad, there usually are stripers or other bass around. If you could catch some and use for baits, it work better than minnows on crappie. They don't live long in livewells. That's all I could think of now....

Answer 5

The Gizzard Shad is most often found in large schools. The common name "skipjack" is derived from the fact that individuals within a school may often be observed leaping out of the water or skipping along the surface on their sides. Spawning generally takes place in late spring, usually in shallow protected water. Eggs and milt are released in the school, seemingly without regard for individual mates. Adhesive eggs attach to submerged objects and hatch in about 4 days. Although adult shad are moderately deep-bodied, fry are extremely slender and delicate looking until they reach about 1.25 inches in length. Gizzard shad are planktivorous. Young feed on microscopic animals and plants, as well as small insect larvae. Adults feed by filtering small food items from the water using their long, close-set gill rakes.

Threadfin Shad are more likely to be found in waters with a noticeable current and are usually in the upper five feet of water. They are quite temperature sensitive, with die-offs reported at temperatures below 45°F. Spawning begins in the spring when water temperatures reach approximately 70°F, and may continue into the summer. During spawning, one or more females are accompanied by several males.

Mooneye Shad prefer swift, clean water and will not tolerate silted conditions. Little is known of the spawning ritual of this fish, but it probably occurs at random in April and May in shallow areas of cleaner streams. Each female produces about 10,000 to 20,000 eggs, and no care is given to the young. Mooneye commonly reach 9 to 11 inches in length, with a maximum size of about 10 to 12 inches. Food consists mostly of plankton during the young stages of life, but the fish switch quickly to insects, mollusks, crayfish and small fish at later stages.

Answer 6

Hm lets see the shad well all i Can give you is this
http://indian-river.fl.us/fishing/fish/herramsh.html

Answer 7

We use them for catfishing a lot. They are also great food for stripers, wipers, northern, and walleye. One good fact about them is that as soon as you take them outta the water, they are pretty much goners after that. They don't last long, alive. They are very delicate and die when you take them outta the water.

Answer 8

this website has all you need to know about shad.
it has all kinds of facts about them.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shad

Answer 9

there a bait fish, and thats all there good for,