Ken Schultz's Field Guide to Saltwater Fish - Macaw Pets store

Shad, Alabama
Alosa alabamae
OTHER NAMES
Gulf shad, Ohio shad.
Distribution. This species
occurs in the northern
Gulf of Mexico, from the
Mississippi Delta and
Louisiana eastward to the
Choctawhatchee River in
Florida; it also occurs in
rivers from Iowa to Arkansas
and across West Virginia.
Habitat/Life history. The
Alabama shad is a schooling
species that spends
most of its life in the ocean;
when mature, it returns
from early spring through
summer to rivers and
streams to spawn, inhabiting
open water of medium
to large rivers. Young shad
descend rivers in autumn.
190 Shad, Alabama
This member of the Clupeidae family of herring and shad is
an anadromous species virtually ignored by anglers. It does
have some commercial significance, however.
Identification. A silvery fish like its other relatives, the
Alabama shad has a large terminal mouth, with upper and
lower jaws of almost equal length. Its tongue has a single
median row of small teeth, there is no lateral line, the posterior
of the dorsal fin lacks an elongated slender filament,
and there are 18 or fewer anal rays. In general, it is nearly
identical to the larger-growing American shad, but an adult
fish has 42 to 48 gill rakers on the lower limb of the first gill
arch.
Size. The Alabama shad can grow to just over 20 inches
but is usually under 15 inches long.
Food/Angling. The feeding habits of this species at sea are
unknown but are presumably similar to those of hickory and
American shad. The Alabama shad is anadromous and only
a potential angling target during upriver spawning migrations,
during which time it does not feed. This smallish shad
is a largely incidental catch and a rare deliberate angling
target.