Field test of a new method for tracking small fishes in shallow rivers using passive integrated transponder (PIT) technology

Abstract

A new method for tracking small fishes in shallow streams based on passive integrated transponder (PIT) technology, using a portable reading unit, was investigated. The device consists of a chest-mounted palmtop computer, a reader, and a 12-V battery enclosed in a backpack, connected to a 60-cm-diameter coil antenna mounted on a 4-m-long pole. The method was field tested with wild Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar, parr using transponders 23.1 mm long and 3.9 mm in diameter surgically implanted in the peritoneal cavity of the fish. Laboratory experiments indicated no posttagging mortality for fish > 84 mm in fork length and no tag loss when sutures were used. In the field, tag detection distance was up to 1 m. While moving the antenna above the stream surface, the operator could locate a fish's position to within a square metre. Experiments indicated that more than 80% of tagged parr, on average, were detected by the reader. The technique is a useful alternative to standard radiotelemetry in small-scale environments because PIT tags can be implanted in smaller-bodied fishes and fine-scale movements of individuals can be studied. It can be applied to address numerous questions in the fields of animal behaviour, habitat use, and population dynamics.

Mobility and home-range use of Atlantic salmon parr over short time scales

“…In comparison to earlier studies using mark-recapture (Saunders and Gee 1964;Hesthagen 1990), visual observation (Steingrimsson and Grant 1999) or passive integrated transponder (PIT) technology Roussel et al 2000Roussel et al , 2004, radiotelemetry permitted locating fish over larger distances under a wider variety of environmental conditions. However, due to the transmitter size limitations, this methodology allows only the study of larger individual parr.…”

Contributed Review: Source-localization algorithms and applications using time of arrival and time difference of arrival measurements

“…Telemetry systems are widely used to track fish to observe their behavior and obtain other information such as seasonal changes (e.g., preferences for water depths or temperatures), foraging behavior, habitat utilization, home range size, spawning behavior, site fidelity, and mortality (Priede et al, 1990;Metcalfe and Arnold, 1997;Roussel et al, 2000;Meyer et al, 2000;Cunjak et al, 2005;and Skalski et al, 2001). Because many fish of interest are small, methods for implantation of sources within their bodies or external attachment are an important topic of research.…”

Combining Radio and PIT-Telemetry to Study the Large and Fine-Scale Movements of Stocked and Wild Brown Trout (Salmo trutta L.) in a Northeastern Stream, Portugal

“…Despite of the high costs of individual radio-tags and the detection equipment that restrict the number of tagged fishes, different studies were made to evaluate the home range of target species, like diel (Belanger & Rodriguez, 2001) and seasonal movements (Burrell et al, 2000), the influence of environmental factors (Ovidio et al, 1998) and the efficacy of fishways (Scruton et al, 2002). On the other hand, passive integrated transponder (PIT) technology has been developed for monitoring the individual movements of free-ranging fish for tracking (Prentice et al, 1990a;Armstrong et al, 1996;Greenberg & Giller, 2000), even small aquatic animals in shallow waters, involving low equipment costs and the possibility of addressing numerous questions in fields of animal behaviour, habitat use and population dynamics not covered by radiotelemetry (Roussel et al, 2000, Quintella et al, 2005. The indefinite life span and high tag retention with no apparent effects on growth and survival of tagged animals are other advantages mentioned to the PIT telemetry (Ombredane et al, 1998;Bubb et al, 2002).…”

“…Initially, stationary systems were used to evaluate the migration and survival of fish passing through fishway orifices (Prentice et al, 1990b;Castro-Santos et al, 1996) or streamwide antennae (Barbin-Zydlewski et al, 2001). In recent years, different types of portable equipments, like the flat-bed antenna design (Armstrong et al, 1996), the multipoint decoders connected to several flat-bed antennae (Riley et al, 2003) and the portable antenna (Roussel et al, 2000;Coucherousset et al, 2010), were developed and adapted to assess the behaviour of local populations in shallow streams. However, there is a lack of studies combining both radio and PIT telemetry technologies to study the behaviour of trout populations and this possibility is important to enhance the data quality.…”