American Shad Fishing - Pie IX Dam - Montreal

This morning, I went to pie ix dam with dad to fishing american shad. The American shad (Alosa sapidissima) is the largest member of the herring family Clupeidae. In many Canadian rivers, the annual "shad run" is a dramatic event. Within a space of a few weeks shad by the thousands come in from the sea and move upriver to spawn. When the serviceberry tree blooms (often called shad bush in eastern Canada) and the shad flies emerge from the St. Lawrence River around Montreal, the annual run has arrived.



The popular method for shad angling is fly fishing. A weighted "jig" (dart jig) is the preferred lure. Shad do not feed while migrating upstream to spawn, but like salmon they will strike at a lure.