The Department of Environmental Protection hosted the annual Hudson and Harbor Fish Count Saturday at 19 sites along the Hudson from Manhattan to Peebles Island.

The annual event is on for just one day and is produced by the Hudson River Estuary Program, during which naturalists and visitors can explore the diverse and fascinating creatures below the river's surface.

"It's important for people to know that there's this incredible ecosystem right in their backyard if they live here in Yonkers,” said environmental educator Gabrielle Carmine, of the Center for the Urban River. “To know that the Hudson river is alive and well."

Carmine described the process as taking a 30-foot long net, dragging it through the Hudson, and then bringing it up to shore and counting and identifying the fish that are caught.

“It's the idea of bringing people to the river and helping them find out what amazing things live here so that they can eventually become better stewards of our estuary,” said Estuary Educator Chris Bowser.