How’s The Water: January 25, 2013

Anton Community Newspapers • 132 East 2nd Street • Mineola, NY 11501 • Phone: 516-747-8282 • FAX: 516-742-5867

How’s The Water: January 25, 2013

Written by Patricia Aitken Friday, 25 January 2013 00:00

Don’t Know What An Alewife Is?

Learn Feb. 12 in Oyster Bay

Friends of the Bay, in cooperation with the Long Island Sound Study, Department of Environmental Conservation and the Seatuck Environmental Center will be conducting a training session for alewife monitoring on Tuesday, February 12 from 7 to 8 p.m. in the Friends of the Bay offices at 111 South Street, Oyster Bay.

What is an alewife? Alewives (also called river herring) are small fish, growing up to 16 inches long and weighing less than half a pond. Their small size belies their importance in the ecosystem. Alewives provide for river otters, seals and other marine mammals, birds such as cormorants, ospreys, herons and eagles and other fish including bass, trout and cod. Alewives support both commercial and recreational fisheries. In the South, they are a regional delicacy. Further north, they are used as bait for lobster traps and are valued as bait for striped bass.

An alewife Populations are in serious decline along the Atlantic Coast. Management of the population is complicated, since river herring begin life in headwater creeks managed by state inland fisheries agencies. They then migrate to coastal waters controlled by state marine fisheries agencies.

On Long Island, alewife populations have declined also and this aspect of our natural heritage has been largely forgotten. Efforts are underway to restore alewives by providing access to historical spawning grounds that have been lost due to barriers to migration. Plans are underway to modify impassable culverts, remove obsolete dams, or install fish ladders and other passage structures to help fish reach valuable spawning habitat. If you are interested in learning more about alewives, respond to either Kelly Hines Leo at 631-444-0441 ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) or Patricia Aitken at 516-922-6666 ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ).

News

Taste Of The Town

Thursday, 23 May 2013 00:00

The streets of Oyster Bay were full with enthusiastic supporters of the Oyster Bay High School PTSA, coming out in force to enjoy a Taste of the Town. This was the first annual Taste of the Town — Restaurant Stroll, and, judging by the crowds and the happy smiles in evidence all evening, it will be the first of many successful events.

This event, previously known as the Taste of the Gold Coast, had been held in catering facilities. This year, the committee felt strongly that they wanted to support the local restaurants and businesses that were impacted by Hurricane Sandy. The local restaurants and businesses are very generous to the community, whether to the PTSA, sports clubs or local nonprofits. The Chamber of Commerce enthusiastically supported the idea, and a wonderful concept came to life.

Heart Of The Harbor

Thursday, 23 May 2013 00:00

No Dolan Fireworks This Year

“There won’t be any fireworks on July 4,” said Caroline DuBois. She said letters have gone out to residents of Cove Neck from the Dolans telling everyone the news. Charles and Helen Dolan have celebrated their wedding anniversary with fireworks on the Fourth of July for many years. Having attended one of them was a great boon. It was a massive production and needed the cooperation of their neighbors, who were all invited to the party. We parked in an area along the road and with our invitation to show, we were picked up by a van and driven to the estate.

The entire beachfront was filled with tables and chairs. Food stations dotted the area. There was a carousel in the section where you first arrived. The food was served on china with real silverware: no paper plates and plastic forks. We sat with a basketball pro and his lovely family. When the party ended there were teddy bears for the children and stationery for the ladies. You knew you had been to a great party.

Sports

Golf Tournament Benefits Boys & Girls Club

Thursday, 23 May 2013 00:00

Glen Cove Boys & Girls Club held their Annual Golf Tournament, named for the late World Golf Hall of Famer Joseph C. Dey Jr., on Monday, May 6, at Meadow Brook Club in Jericho. Hugh R. O’Kane, President of Hugh O’Kane Electric Company, chaired this year’s event.

“This year’s outing was an overwhelming success due to the tremendous support from both our corporate and personal friends. We attracted a sold-out crowd across a broad spectrum from both the Long Island and New York City communities,” said O’Kane. “We are thankful to all those that both attended and supported our outing this year.”

Nick Carbone Helps Fight Alzheimer’s

Thursday, 16 May 2013 00:00

According to the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America, more than five million Americans are suffering with Alzheimer’s disease, the sixth leading cause of death in the United States.

Troubled by these statistics and personally affected, Long Islander and NBA draftee Gordon Thomas founded the Alzheimer’s All-Star Basketball Classic Committee, a group of professionals dedicated to raising awareness of Alzheimer’s and dementia.