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EVALUATION OF FISH SAMPLING DESIGNS FOR COASTAL WATERS
Citation:
Tanner, D K. AND J. C. Brazner. EVALUATION OF FISH SAMPLING DESIGNS FOR COASTAL WATERS. Presented at 35th Annual Meeting of American Fisheries, Duluth, MN, January 23-25, 2002.
Description:
Because no objective assessment of fish sampling methodologies has been completed for Great Lakes coastal wetlands we evaluated catches from several techniques and studies to determine the most effective combinations for these habitats. Data from six underdeveloped sites in Green Bay suggested that fyke-nets were more effective than either seining or minnow trapping. Comparison of electrofishing and fyke-netting efforts in six western Lake Superior wetlands demonstrated that although electrofishing required less time it resulted in significantly lower catches than 24 and 48 h fyke-netting. Electrofishing caught more adults of some of the larger sized species, while fyke-nets often captured larger numbers of YOY. Overall, fyke-nets were the most effective single method, and large-framed, small-meshed nets set parallel to shore in a lead-to-lead orientation with blocking wings captured the most fish, species and life-stages. Since 24 and 48 h sets captured 73% and 87% of the total number of species captured in 96 h, 48 h fyke-net sets may be an adequate sampling duration for most single-method designs. The most effective and efficient combination of methods for gathering community-level fish data in coastal wetlands during near-average water-level conditions was 24 h fyke-netting combined with night electrofishing. This abstract does not necessarily reflect EPA policy.