Story posted July 22, 2005 It's just a scant few fish eggs,
translucent and barely visible in the waning afternoon light.
But to Mark Burton '07, it might as well be gold. It is the
first positive proof that the American shad is indeed spawning
in these waters, which are located downstream from the Brunswick
Hydroelectric Dam. Marine biologists have suspected a shad
spawning ground was located somewhere along this stretch of the
Androscoggin River since shad began returning to these once
heavily polluted waters a decade ago. "I kind of thought they'd
be here," says Jaret Reblin, a Bowdoin laboratory instructor who
is assisting Burton in this fieldwork. "This stretch of river
seems to be the right habitat, with a cobbly, sandy bottom."
It's only a small sample, but it is encouraging. Assistant
Professor John Lichter is overseeing their research effort,
which is part of a larger, ongoing ecological examination of
Merrymeeting Bay. "Most of this research has focused on the
flora of the Merrymeeting Bay ecosystem