On Wednesday, I was along the Potomac on the Potomac Heritage Trail north of Windy Run, and saw the earliest cormorants (and gulls) on the large rocks that stick up out of the river there. 

For those interested in the impact of the seasons on the wildlife in our midst, the return of the cormorants is an interesting moment.  I believe they are seeing the beginning of the annual shad migration up the river.  When it gets in full swing in early-to-mid March there will be hundreds of birds out there getting fattened up on the plentiful fish.  Even though the quantity of fish today is a small fraction of what it once was, by mid-March you should be able to see the silver fish in the shallows and frequently jumping out of the water throughout the river.   The below photo was taken in late March 2017.

The historical significance of this fish migration is substantial.  For the native peoples who lived here for 10,000 years before the first Europeans, historians believe that the annual hunter-gatherer movements would have synchronized with this fish migration.  I like to imagine that villages left for the summer and winter would soon be filling up as the native people showed up here to get some much-needed plentiful food after the cold winter.  Evidence of such settlements has been found in several areas of North Arlington on the heights above the river.  It’s not hard to imagine trails of smoke kicking in again as fires in the seasonal villages were restarted.  And in the last 1,000 years or so before the arrival of Europeans, the mostly permanent agricultural villages would soon be humming with preparations for the new season upcoming. 

You might also find it interesting that in June 1608, the first European explorer along the Potomac, Captain John Smith, recorded his observations of the huge quantity of fish in the river.  There were so many that “we attempted to catch them with a frying pan but we found that to be a bad instrument”.  Other early accounts reference the large quantity of fish at Little Falls, particularly large sturgeon.  One can only imagine that the quantity of birds and other predators would also be far more than we can even imagine now.  

As the ongoing efforts of many people to improve the water and habitat along the Potomac and Chesapeake continue, I hope we will live long enough to see such a proliferation of fish and resulting wildlife.  That would be an awesome addition to the urban habitat of the DC area! 

Regardless, by mid-March, it is an amazing experience to walk along the Potomac Heritage Trail.  Not only the fish and birds, but the spring ephemeral wildflowers are plentiful.   

Happy spring!