 the american shad, alosa sapidissima, is a species of anadromous fish distributed from southern labrador to northern florida. american shad are in family clupeidae of order clupeiformes. they are not closely related to the other north american shads. rather, it seems to form a lineage that diverged from a common ancestor of the european taxa before these diversified faria, r.; weiss, s. & alexandrino, p. (2006): a molecular phylogenetic perspective on the evolutionary history of alosa spp. (clupeidae). molecular phylogenetics and evolution 40(1): 298â304.  adult shad weigh between  and  and they have a delicate flavor when cooked."grass shad-another fine bait- southeastern king mackerel club â king mackerel fishing in southeastern north carolina." southeastern king mackerel club â king mackerel fishing in southeastern north carolina-. web. 15 dec. 2011. . it is considered flavorful enough to not require sauces, herbs or spices. it can be boiled, filleted and fried in butter, or baked. traditionally, a little vinegar is sprinkled over it on the plate. in the eastern united states, roe shad (females) are prized because the eggs are considered a delicacy. ==life history== the shad spends most of its life at sea, but swims up fresh rivers to spawn. northern populations are iteroparous, thus they may survive breeding, return to the sea and then return to freshwaters to spawn several more times. however, southern populations exhibit semelparity, similar to pacific salmon. in the marine environment, shad are schooling fish. thousands are often seen at the surface in spring, summer, and autumn. they are hard to find in the winter, as they tend to go deeper before spawning season; they have been pulled up in nets as deep as . like other herrings, the american shad is primarily a plankton feeder, but will eat small shrimp and fish eggs. occasionally they eat small fish, but these are only a minor item in their general diet.froese, rainer, a
Animals_described_in_1811 Clupeidae Fauna_of_the_United_States Fish_of_North_America Freshwater_fish_of_Florida Saltwater_fish_of_Florida Sport_fish Symbols_of_Connecticut