River report: Holding steady
Flow at Point of Rocks is around 6,000 cubic feet per second (cfs), which is roughly 50% of the median for this time of year.
The U.S. Drought Monitor map holds steady from last week, with around 90% of the basin in moderate drought conditions (light orange) and 8% in severe drought (dark orange), mostly in the southern Pennsylvania section of the Potomac watershed (blue line).
Rain in the basin is 6.5 inches below normal since last September. NOAA predicts up to 1.5 inches of rain in the region over the next week.
Dingdong…the fish is here!🐟
Spring is in the air and the fish are migrating, which means the Fish Doorbell is back online. This live video feed shows when fish are waiting at a Utrecht canal in the Netherlands. Anyone around the world can hit the “doorbell” when they see a fish, and the lock keeper will manually open the canal door to let the fish through.
The fish are then free to continue their way upstream to spawn.
While not in the Potomac basin, the Fish Doorbell is a great example of creative aquatic habitat management that involves the global community. The website is full of fun facts, photos, and even lesson plans for teachers.
As a side note…
🎣ICPRB’s Fishing News section is back for the season! Swim down to the bottom of the newsletter to learn more.