alewife

alewife
alewife1
/ayl"wuyf'/, n., pl. alewives.
a North American fish, Alosa pseudoharengus, resembling a small shad.
[1625-35, Amer.; earlier allowes, perh. influenced by ALEWIFE2, prob. < F alose shad < Gallo-Latin alausa]
alewife2
/ayl"wuyf'/, n., pl. alewives.
a woman who owns or operates an alehouse.
[1350-1400; ME; see ALE, WIFE]

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Important North American food fish (Pomolobus, or Alosa, pseudoharengus) of the herring family.

The alewife grows to about 1 ft (30 cm). Most populations spend several years along North America's Atlantic coast before ascending freshwater streams to spawn each spring in ponds or sluggish rivers.

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▪ fish
also called  Sawbelly, Grayback, Gaspereau, or Branch Herring 
 (Pomolobus, or Alosa, pseudoharengus), important North American food fish of the herring family, Clupeidae. Deeper-bodied than the true herring, the alewife has a pronounced saw-edge on the underside; it grows to about 30 cm (1 foot). Except for members of a few lake populations, it spends several years along the Atlantic coast of North America before ascending freshwater streams (possibly the parent stream) to spawn each spring in ponds or sluggish rivers. Alewives entered the Great Lakes through the St. Lawrence Seaway and the Welland Canal. In the 1960s they multiplied so rapidly that they became a nuisance, threatening the native fishes by competing for the same food sources. Importation of coho and king salmon brought the alewife population into balance in the Great Lakes in the 1970s.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Alewife — ist der Name von: Alewife (Maine), einer Ortschaft im US Bundesstaat Maine Alewife Cove, einer Bucht im US Bundesstaat Connecticut Alewife Pond (Maine), eines Sees im US Bundesstaat Maine Alewife Pond (New York), eines Sees im US Bundesstaat New… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Alewife — Ale wife , n.; pl. {Alewives}. A woman who keeps an alehouse. Gay. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Alewife — Ale wife , n.; pl. {Alewives}. [This word is properly aloof, the Indian name of a fish. See Winthrop on the culture of maize in America, Phil Trans. No. 142, p. 1065, and Baddam s Memoirs, vol. ii. p. 131.] (Zo[ o]l.) A North American fish… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • alewife — (n.) herring like fish of North America, 1630s, named from the word for female tavern keepers (late 14c.), from ALE (Cf. ale) + WIFE (Cf. wife); the fish so called in reference to its large abdomen …   Etymology dictionary

  • alewife — [āl′wīf΄] n. pl. alewives [āl′wīvz΄] 1. a woman who keeps an alehouse ☆ 2. [< ?] a NW Atlantic clupeid fish ( Alosa pseudoharengus) that swims up rivers to spawn in the spring: used for food and in fertilizers …   English World dictionary

  • Alewife — Taxobox name = Alewife image width = 250px regnum = Animalia phylum = Chordata classis = Actinopterygii ordo = Clupeiformes familia = Clupeidae genus = Alosa subgenus = (Pomolobus) species = A. (P.) pseudoharengus binomial = Alosa (Pomolobus)… …   Wikipedia

  • alewife — noun (plural alewives) a NW Atlantic fish of the herring family, swimming up rivers to spawn. [Alosa pseudoharengus.] Origin C17: perh. from earlier alewife woman who keeps an alehouse , with ref. to the fish s large belly …   English new terms dictionary

  • alewife — I ale•wife [[t]ˈeɪlˌwaɪf[/t]] n. pl. wives ich a North American fish, Alosa pseudoharengus, similar to a shad • Etymology: 1625–35, amer.; earlier allowes, perh. influenced by alewife II, prob. < F alose shad < Gallo Latin alausa II… …   From formal English to slang

  • alewife — silkinė perpelė statusas T sritis zoologija | vardynas taksono rangas rūšis atitikmenys: lot. Alosa pseudoharengus angl. alewife; gray herring rus. сероспинка; элевайф ryšiai: platesnis terminas – perpelės …   Žuvų pavadinimų žodynas

  • Alewife Brook — ist die Bezeichnung mehrerer Flüsse in den Vereinigten Staaten: Alewife Brook (Nordatlantik), ein Fluss im US Bundesstaat Maine Alewife Brook (Babson Reservoir), ein Fluss im US Bundesstaat Massachusetts (Essex County) Alewife Brook (Essex River) …   Deutsch Wikipedia

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