Hatchery production of American shad: A comparison of spawning methods in North Carolina and other Atlantic basin jurisdictions

American shad (Alosa sapidissima) hatchery production programs exist in Atlantic basin jurisdictions from Maine to South Carolina as an integral part of American shad restoration projects.  Development of efficient methodologies for producing viable American shad eggs for intensive culture purposes as well as prudent use of wild stocks of American shad as broodstock for these programs are critical concerns.  Initial efforts to produce hatchery-reared larvae relied on fertilization of eggs from strip spawning and transfer of viable eggs for incubation and intensive culture.  Several methods to obtain viable eggs through intensive tank spawning of wild American shad adults were successfully developed in the 1980’s.  Since that time, several different protocols for obtaining viable American shad eggs through intensive tank spawning methods have been developed.  Between 1998 and 2009, more than 22 million American shad larvae have been produced and stocked in the Roanoke River basin by the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) for restoration purposes by utilizing a variety of spawning methods.  The results of these various methods were compared and NCWRC’s results were also compared with results from production methods utilized by other Atlantic basin jurisdictions.