Volunteers needed for Shawsheen River herring count Follow Us Question of the Day By - Associated Press - Sunday, April 18, 2021 ANDOVER, Mass. (AP) - The Merrimack River Watershed Council and Shawsheen River Watershed Association are looking for volunteers to participate in this year’s Shawsheen River herring count. Volunteers are needed to take 10-minute shifts for the community science program on a pedestrian bridge by the Atria Senior Living Center over the river in Andover and count the herring migrating up the river. The volunteers can then submit their data to an online data sheet. The herring populations began returning after two dams were removed in 2016-2017 and organizers say the count is to help document the population’s return to their historical spawning grounds.