The lower baby alewife in the photo went head first over the American Tissue Dam spillway, fell 25 feet, and hit the concrete slab at the base with its mouth.
As the photo shows, the impact on the concrete slab at the base of the dam spillway caused the alewive's eyes to be ejected from its sockets and completely crushed its mouth and skull. This alewife was found approx. five feet below the dam spillway in a tangle of logs and brush.
This photo shows the baby alewives striking and bouncing off the concrete slab at the base of the American Tissue Dam on 5 October 2002.
The top alewife in this photo also had its head and mouth completely crushed from falling 25 feet over the American Tissue dam spillway and bouncing off the concrete slab at the bottom. Unlike many hundreds of others killed at the dam on 5 October 2002 at least this alewife died very quickly.