Ankle bracelets for fish.. knowing who is coming and going… Developing an acoustic fish “gate” for the Chester River. Hassan Moustahfid, PhD. U.S. IOOS The BEST of the Chester Apr , 2012

Outline Early Tagging Studies in Chester River Present studies DNR- Perch etc. Spawning and Nursery grounds. What new in Fish Tagging/Telemetry (Electronic Tags, Acoustic and Satellite etc.) Chester river What? potential fish to tag Where? Potential Acoustic Telemetry Array placement Why? Example of questions to answer Couple optimal design for different needs

Mansueti, 1960 in Chesapeake Science Vol. 1 Comparison of the Movements of Stocked and Resident Yellow Perch, Perca flavescens, in Tributaries of Chesapeake Bay, Maryland Mark –recapture technique Few returned fish Early Fish Tagging Work Conventional Tagging

A total of 1495 yellow perch were tagged and released Fisherman interest in the spawning run of yellow perch in Maryland’s upper Chesapeake waters, Maryland DNR implemented a pilot study in spring The objective: investigate movements of yellow perch during the spawning period. Technique used Mark-Recapture- Fish were tagged with t-bar anchor tags. Fishermen where rewarded if they get back the tags. Fish Tagging Work

DNR Fisheries Service 2008 Yellow Perch Tagging (mark-recapture) study, RESULTS: Of the 1495 fish tagged, 27 tag returned. Conclusion: The success of conventional tagging study is very closely related to fishermen cooperation,

Electronic Tagging Acoustic Telemetry Technology What’s available? –VEMCO, LOTEK, HTI, etc. –Passive arrays, manual equipment, combinations

B. Meloy Even Clupeid species such as Herring, Shad can be tagged with acoustic tags.

OTN

10 Source Tag A Giant Program

11 Fabrizio et al NOAA tech memo,

POST array Courtesy Dr.John Payne (POST)

The waters of the Chester are spawning and nursery areas for many fish species: Alewife, shad, blueback, perch, Blue Crab. Striped bass=Rockfish is the most prized anadromous (freshwater spawning) fish found in the Chester. Perfect place to establish an acoustic array, Depth Max: m Mouth Love point and Eastern Neck: ~2 miles Chester River Acoustic Array Design Ideas

Bathymetry of the lower Chester River. Note that the mouth of the Chester River is shallower than the vicinity of fixed monitoring station ET4.2. Source: EPA Chesapeake Bay Program

Help fisheries managers understand more about the fish species and their populations. Identification of sensitive “hot spot” areas, high value Ecosystems and ecosystem benefits created by Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). Monitor and mitigate the impacts of management strategies including protected areas and fisheries regulations. Define essential fish habitat (EFH) Establish baseline habitat usage studies on potential sites of future anthropogenic disturbance (e.g aquaculture sites) Improve stock assessments: provide spatial and temporal refinement of natural mortality, harvest susceptibility and survival rates Animal Telemetry can reveal how environmental factors drives animal distributions in nutrient enriched estuaries and coastal areas, to better understand the impact of the large low-oxygen zones Provide the scientific basis for ecosystem-based management (EBM). Recreational Fisherman interest in the spawning run Why do we tag fish?

Education and outreach: From recreational fishers to conservationists animals offer a unique opportunity to catch the attention of the public and educate them about the value and importance of ocean observation. Popular and useful educational products have been created for grades K-12 with telemetry and tracking data.

Example of a Typical Receiver Layout for a River Migration Study Or Bay Source Vemco

Candidate species Perch Striped Bass= Rockfish Alewife Shad Blueback Blue Crab Again the design will depend on the Research Priorities Chester River Acoustic Telemetry Array

Thank You 19