Field Trips
- Grade Level:
- Middle School: Sixth Grade through Eighth Grade
- Subject:
- Science,Social Studies
The Great Fish Migration is a 4 hour program that partners with the MDI Historical Society and the Somes Meynell Wildlife Refuge to bring a holistic picture of the fishing history of Somesville and the revitalization of the local Alewife population.
Alewives are anadramous species of herring, meaning they live in the ocean but breed in lakes and ponds along the North Atlantic. It is an arduous journey filled with predators and man made disturbances such as damns. In the past 10 years Acadia National Park, along with all of Mount Desert Island has worked to create alternative routes for fish passage. Alewives have seen incredible booms in their population with these recent innovative solutions.
In spring, with any luck, students can observe the alewife migration and can even assist in fish netting to move alwives above the historic damns. Students will learn about the value of the fishing industry on the island both past and present in this engaging, hands on example of science and history in action.
Field Trip Planner
Materials
Last updated: March 10, 2022