Most frequently caught, netted in 14 of our trawl samples, was one of everyone’s favorites –the hogchoker, a palm-sized flatfish. This little sole was also the most abundant fish in our catches – 510 of them – and the most wide-ranging – netted from Rensselaer all the way to Manhattan. Atlantic tomcod (101 taken in 13 samples) and white perch (170 in 12 samples) were also common. These fish are released back to the river after our programs.
The most unusual find? A small Atlantic moonfish, netted at Piermont on September 3. Young of this species and others typically found further south occasionally show up in the warm waters of the lower Hudson estuary in late summer and early fall, adding to the wonderful diversity of fish life here.
