. Coast watch. Marine resources; Oceanography; Coastal zone management; Coastal ecology. TOP: Researcher Joe Hightower measures a striped bass near the fallen log where it was caught. BOTTOM: Waters and Farmer tie up at the river's edge to examine the catch. The Quaker Neck Dam was built in 1952 near Goldsboro to provide cooling water for a steam electric plant. Despite the installation of a fish ladder to help migrating fish swim upstream, most studies showed that access to historical spawning grounds was restricted, according to Joe Hightower of the Geologi- cal Survey (USGS) and associ
. Coast watch. Marine resources; Oceanography; Coastal zone management; Coastal ecology. TOP: Researcher Joe Hightower measures a striped bass near the fallen log where it was caught. BOTTOM: Waters and Farmer tie up at the river's edge to examine the catch. The Quaker Neck Dam was built in 1952 near Goldsboro to provide cooling water for a steam electric plant. Despite the installation of a fish ladder to help migrating fish swim upstream, most studies showed that access to historical spawning grounds was restricted, according to Joe Hightower of the Geologi- cal Survey (USGS) and associate professor of zoology at North Carolina State University. The dam, which was no longer needed for the electric plant, was removed in 1998 — an action partially supported by the Fishery Resource Grant program (FRG), which is funded by the General Assembly and administered by North Carolina Sea Grant. After the dam removal, Hightower received FRG funding to use radio telemetry to track American shad and striped bass to see if the fish made use of the newly available spawning grounds. "American shad historically are considered a high-quality eating fish," Hightower says of the largest member of the shad family. In a report about habitat restoration priorities, Hightower cites data from the 19th century indicating that American shad migrated well into the piedmont. North Carolina had one of the largest American shad fisheries in the United States in the late 1800s, and the Neuse was thought to have one of the largest runs in the state, Hightower says. Less is known about historical popula- tions of striped bass — also known as rockfish — because its recreational and commercial popularity is a more recent phenomenon. Hightower's study on habitat restoration and continued monitoring by the WRC is important because many rivers have similar dams. Some have been adapted — with varying degrees of success — to aid fish passage. But many, like the Quaker Ne
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookcollectionunclibra, booksubjectoceanography
