Drawing on the author's thirty-year career as a scientist and educator with a passion for the native river fish of the North East, this book tells the story of these endangered fish with a mix of research, historical accounts, anecdotes, personal experience, interviews, and images.

John Waldman is a professor at the City University of New York and a leading voice in aquatic conservation biology. He is the author of the award-winning Heartbeats in the Muck: the History, Sea Life, and Environment of New York Harbor (Lyons), among other books.