Range: Throughout Tidal rivers in Nova Scotia
Common caught Size: 2-5 lbs
Eating Size: 2 lbs +
Record: N/A
Bag Limit: 5 Posession
Season: No closed season. Can be caught in non-tidal waters from April to July. (you need a valid fishing liscence to fish in non-tidal waters)

Shad are a bony fish which makes some beleive they are not good eating. Personally I find shad to be a very tasty fish, not quite to striped bass quallity, and I have added a couple of recipes which do (I have use these recipes) greatly reduce the bone issue by basically disolving the small bones to the consistancy of canned salmon bones. I have fed shad cooked this way to young children with no problems. Recipes are located at the bottom of this page.

Appearance: An anadromous species, the American shad spends most of its life at sea in large schools and only enters freshwater in the spring to spawn.

Color of back is green or greenish blue with silvery sides, white underneath (colors darken when fish enters fresh water to spawn); belly with scutes forming distinct keel; one or more dark spots in a row behind operculum; lower jaw with pointed tip that fits into v-shaped notch in upper jaw.

American shad are anadromous fish, meaning they spend most of their lives in saltwater but spawn in freshwater. Shad are found along the Atlantic seaboard from Labrador to Florida. Shad are an important food source for other fish such as bluefish and striped bass. Rising spring temperatures prompt shad to leave the ocean and return to the waters in which they were born.

Angling: Shad provide drag-screeching runs, broadside-to-the current fight, and frequent aerial maneuvers. They are as spunky a river fish as there is to be found and are especially exciting when caught early in their upstream migration (they are spent after spawning and are therefore less challenging). But they are also of limited availability seasonally. The shad spawning run lasts only six to eight weeks in the spring. These fish often move through a river in stages or waves. They are affected by water conditions and are often not present in the same locales on a day-to-day basis.

Shad are not much for midday activity. Anglers often experience the best shad fishing in the evening, and early morning is considered prime time. The first two or three hours of the day may be the best because shad migrate upriver at night and there is a new wave of migrants in the morning, and perhaps also because of the low level of light. Shad will move during the day, however, particularly in cloudy or rainy weather. They may migrate from pool to pool or even move around in a large, slow-flowing section of water during the day, being visible on or just below the surface as they cruise en masse. Anglers frequently see this activity when the fish are on the spawning grounds and appear to be daisy-chaining, much like tarpon.

Shad typically remain in river channels, preferring deep water to the swift, riffling, shallow sections. The primary place to fish for them is in the pools. The water is slower, calmer, and deeper here than in the rest of the river, and shad primarily rest in such spots before continuing upriver. You may find a large school of fish occupying a particular pool on a given day, or you may find few or none. Sometimes, when success tapers off in a given spot, you merely need to move slightly up, down, or across the river to find action again.

Light spinning tackle is standard for shad. A 6- to 7-foot light-action rod and a spinning reel equipped with 4- to 8-pound line are best. The reel should have a smooth drag, as large shad will take varied amounts of line during the fight. Terminal gear largely consists of shad darts; a dart is a lead-bodied bucktail jig with a tapered form and slanted nose. Darts are the perennially favored shad catcher, although some anglers have success with flies, small spinners, and tiny spoons, the latter being fished less often on a bead-chain-style sinker and more commonly behind a downrigger weight.

It is usually necessary to maneuver these offerings down to the bottom, a task that is influenced by the depth of water, strength of current, weight of lure, and size of line. Shad do not feed during their spawning runs but apparently strike out of reflexive action; thus, they don't seem to go out of their way to chase a lure. The offering has to be placed in front of a fish's nose to be effective. For this reason, it's common to get hung up and to lose many lures in the pursuit of shad.

Shore anglers, waders, and those casting from anchored boats should cast across and upstream, allowing their lure to sink to the bottom, then, with the line tight, let the lure swing downstream with the current until it reaches the end of its sweep. Boat anglers either troll into the current or anchor and stillfish their lures by letting them hang in the current. In either case, approximately 75 feet of line is let out behind the boat, using a heavy enough lure (or weighting it with split shot on the line about 18 to 24 inches ahead of the lure) to present the offering just off the bottom.

Darts range in size from tiny to 1/2 ounce. Heavy versions are used in early spring, when the river is high, swift, and roily; at this time, a lot of weight is needed to keep the lure down. But heavy darts are large and may not attract fish even when they do stay down, so anglers often resort to smaller darts and add split shot; the extra weight keeps the dart down, and the smaller dart is more favorable to the shad. The mostly widely used darts weigh between 1/8 to 1/4 ounce.

A red-headed, white-bodied dart (with white or yellow bucktail) is the time-honored favorite color and is effective. But darts come in a host of colors and combinations, and it pays to have a selection of sizes and colors available. Black head/green body, green head/chartreuse body, red head/chartreuse body, and red head/yellow body are among the most successful combinations. It's a good idea to switch colors frequently, however, especially when you know there are fish in the locale you're working but they haven't responded to your initial offering.

Especially effective for trolling are tiny spoons with No. 6 hooks. A good shine is important, and the lure must have perfect balance to run properly, as action is critical. The spoon, which should twirl fast, is fished in a manner similar to that for darts, although it is not necessary to put out as much line; 50 feet or thereabouts will do if the river section is from 8 to 12 feet deep. With spoons, use a swiveling bead-chain sinker (1/4 ounce is standard) about 18 inches up the line. With a downrigger, it is isn't necessary to use weight, but the downrigger release must be set just right.

Fly fishing for shad is popular on both coasts, especially when the water is not in spate condition. Rods should be suited for an 8-weight line (although you can do with less) and be in the 8- to 9-foot range. Sinking, fast-sinking, and sink-tip fly lines are employed according to river depth and current flow. A short leader is adequate. Flies are mostly short-shanked streamers, sometimes brightly colored and often weighted with bead eyes. Using bead eyes and lead strips on the body is illegal in some places (especially New Brunswick) where weighted flies are prohibited (mainly for salmon fishing, to avoid deliberate snagging of fish). Check regulations carefully. It is usually necessary to get the fly down to the bottom, so an across, swing, and hang presentation is best. Most fish strike as the fly makes its downcurrent turn or when it is stripped back in retrieval. Some fly-caught shad are taken close to the surface, however, usually when milling in slow pools. Then, a short stripping retrieve is employed.

RECIPES:

Slow-baked shad

This recipe softens the bones (as in canned salmon), making it an easy-to-prepare, as well as delicious, dish.

1 shad (3-5 lbs) 1 tsp. salt dash of pepper

2 Tbsp. melted butter, OR 2 bacon strips 1 can canned soup (tomato, mushroom, etc.) I like mushroom the best.

Clean shad and split open. Season inside and out with salt and pepper. Brush with melted butter or place the bacon strips over the fish. Pour soup over the fish. Take heavy-duty aluminum foil or several layers of regular foil and wrap the shad. Fold over twice on top, then ends, so the fish is tightly sealed. Bake slowly at 275o F for 5 hours.

The trick is in the slow cooking, and by adding some basalmic vinegar or lemon juice the bones will be disolved faster (and larger bones).

Crusty baked shad

Same as above, but crusty :

Take a brown paper bag (not foil) and grease it well, inside and out, with vegetable oil or shortening. Season the fish lightly with salt on the outside. To make the stuffing, chop an onion and a few stalks of celery and season the combination with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon of pepper. Place stuffing in shad cavity and secure the opening with small cooking skewers.

Carefully place the fish inside the brown bag and secure bag with pins or staples. Put the bag on a cookie sheet. Bake in a very slow oven (225o F) for 5 hours. The slow cooking softens the bones so that they are edible, and the shad is a nice, crusty brown.

Recipes from washington department of fish and wildlife.