Combining Acoustic Doppler Current Profilers (ADCPs) with

Acoustic Arrays to Enhance Interpretation of Fish

Movements.Roger A. Rulifson, Jennifer Cudney-Burch, Roger A. Rulifson, Jennifer Cudney-Burch,

Ryan MulliganRyan Mulligan1, 1, and Andrea Dell’Apaand Andrea Dell’ApaInstitute for Coastal Science and PolicyInstitute for Coastal Science and Policy

East Carolina UniversityEast Carolina University11Queen’s University, Kingston, OntarioQueen’s University, Kingston, Ontario

Mid-Atlantic Regional Association Coastal Ocean Observing System

Baltimore, November 1, 2012

Concerns of the Eastern Seaboard• Wind farms• Offshore oil• Wave/tidal power• Climate

change/sea level rise

• Storm surge

Concerns of the Eastern Seaboard• Wind farms• Offshore oil• Wave/tidal power• Climate

change/sea level rise

• Storm surge

Concerns of the Eastern Seaboard• Wind farms• Offshore oil• Wave/tidal power• Climate

change/sea level rise

• Storm surge

Concerns of the Eastern Seaboard• Wind farms• Offshore oil• Alternative energy• Climate

change/sea level rise

• Storm surge

Isabelle Inlet, Hatteras Island, NC

North Carolina Concerns• Wind farms• Offshore exploration for

natural gas• Barrier Island development/

inlet stabilization• Wave and tidal energy• Military uses – acoustics,

bombing ranges, etc.• Sustainability of commercial &

sport fisheries• Sea level rise/storm surge A migratory fish

Coastal Migratory Pathways• Marine mammals• Sea turtles• Atlantic and shortnose

sturgeons• Coastal pelagic sharks,

skates and rays• Anadromous fishes

(striped bass, shads, river herrings)

• Coastal & estuarine dependent species

• What influences seasonal migrations along the coast?

• What role does Cape Hatteras play in influencing timing and continuance of coastal migratory pathways?

Basic Questions --

Spiny Dogfish Squalus acanthias

• Animal behavior in nature can tell us what habitats are “best”

• Changing use patterns often correlated with anthropogenic change

• Spiny dogfish – most hated and most abundant coastal shark in the world

Historical Migratory Paradigm

United States

Canada

Atlantic OceanWinter

Summer 32

5

4

1Atlantic Ocean

United States

Canada

A B

Overwinter off North Carolina

Springtime northward movement to New England and Canada

Fall southward movement to North Carolina

Northwest Atlantic Ocean

www.fishbase.org

Management practices in the NW Atlantic Ocean were based on:

Generalized knowledge of distribution and abundance patterns from the NEFSC trawl surveys and supporting scientific research

Temperatures8 – 11o C

Water depths to 300 m

Salinities 32-35 ppt

Connecting habitats (NEFSC data) averaged over

entire Eastern Seaboard

Pamlico Sound

Albemarle Sound

Cape Hatteras

Traditional Mark and Recapture Locations Using Commercial Fishing Vessels

East Carolina University mark/recapture studies, 1996-2011

Non-Acoustic Tagging Research,1996-2007

0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1400

1600

1800

2000

0 30 60 90 120 150 180 210 240 270 300 330 360

Days At Large (DAL)

Dis

tan

ce T

rave

led

(K

m)

Days at large (DAL)

Dis

tan

ce (

Km

)

Calendar date

Methods• Mark-recapture tag study (1996-2008)• Floy single barb dart with stainless steel insert

Seasonal Shifts in Sea Surface Temperature (SST)

Winter SST Summer SST

Habitats in Study Area

Cape Lookout (wind data)

Cape Hatteras

Methods: Acoustic Tag Study

Acoustic Results(Single detection rate coast-wide)

Year released

Number released

Number detected

Detection rate

2009 53 39 78%

2010 40 35 87.5%

Overall 93 74 80%

Overall Mark/Recapture rate of 47,000 releases = 1.2%

Preliminary Results: Array Detection

Acoustic Detections Confirm Seasonal Migration Pattern

North Carolina

Delaware Bay

Gulf of Maine

Acoustic Array – always nice to have new stuff!

NOTE: This was covered with red bottom paint prior to deployment.

RDI Workhorse and Trawl Deflector

Retrieval 6 weeks later – paint completely removed; bio-fouling

Acoustic Array, or “Listening Fence”

VR2W

Shallow ADCP: 30 ft

Deep ADCP: 70 ft

Mid-site @ 45 ft, (not processed)

Summary of Detections (Array)

Dogfish Passage, Jan-Apr 2009Bo

ttom

wat

er te

mpe

ratu

re (C

)

Detected on multiple receivers mid-array

Deep Currents - 2009East

West

North

South

V

U

Deep Currents - 2009East

West

North

South

Shallow Currents - 2009East

West

North

South

u

v

Shallow Currents - 2009East

West

North

South

Shallow Location1

2

1 2

Shark #54099

Shallow Location1

2

1 2

Shark #54099

Shallow Water Fish Detections• Currents at the deep and

shallow site are very similar, indicating a relatively uniform along-shelf flow.

• Fish detections are generally more common when the current are moderate (0.2-0.4 m/s) and are flowing eastward (+u component).

V

U

East

West

2009 Detectionsvs.

Bottom Temperature(ADCP)

ShallowRange: 6.3 – 18.7 ºCDetections: 9.0, 10.5 – 12.0 ºC

DeepRange: 7.6 – 18.8 ºCDetections: 9.5, 12.0 – 13.0 ºC

Published Temp Associations:47 ºF or 8.3 ºC

-0.1

-0.08

-0.06

-0.04

-0.02

0

0.02

0.04

0.06

0.08

0.1

0.12

0.14

0.16

0.18

0.2

Frequency of Occurrence

Tidal

Heigh

t (m

)

100100 50 50

Preference for a specific tidal height ?

MLLW

February 2010

# of detections

-0.1

-0.08

-0.06

-0.04

-0.02

0

0.02

0.04

0.06

0.08

0.1

0.12

0.14

0.16

0.18

0.2

Frequency of Occurrence

Tidal

Heigh

t (m

)

100100 50 50

A lot of sharks detected around MLLW

February 2010

# of detections

-0.1

-0.08

-0.06

-0.04

-0.02

0

0.02

0.04

0.06

0.08

0.1

0.12

0.14

0.16

0.18

0.2

Frequency of Occurrence

Tidal

Heigh

t (m

)

100100 50 50

A peak in the detections at a monthly tidal minimum( 8 sharks, 733 detections)

February 2010

# of detections

February 2010

1-week example

Tid

al Height (m

) February 14 – 21, 2010

Tid

al Height (m

) February 14 – 21, 2010

March 1-7, 2010T

idal H

eight (m)

Biological Observations• 1/3 of the tagged sharks moved around Cape Hatteras• Redetection rates are very high (80%) compared to

conventional floy tag studies (1-4%)• Sharks encountered the array multiple times within a

season (2-8 separate days)• Residence time varied (10 minutes – 24 hours; multiple

days in a row)• Crepuscular onshore / offshore movements ?????• Hatteras Bight is an important migration pathway for

species of concern (Atlantic sturgeon & sand tiger sharks)

Remaining Challenges• Behavioral data needs to be coupled with environmental

data for context – WHY do these animals move when they do?

• Hatteras Bight is very dynamic – need to combine multiple types of environmental data together to understand the system

• Better methods for array deployment including receivers, ADCPs, and passive acoustic devices (high energy, commercial fishing)

Acoustic Wave GliderWeather Station

Water Current Speed & Direction;Wave Direction; Depth

Salinity & Temperature

Acoustics –Active & Passive

Acknowledgements• North Carolina Sea Grant• Dewey Hemilright (F/V TarBaby)• Chris Hickman (F/V BoutTime)• Coastal Resources Management Ph.D

Program, ECU• ICSP, ECU• Office of Diving / Water Safety, ECU• Department of Biology, ECU• Department of Physics, ECU• Department of Geography, ECU• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service• Atlantic States Marine Fisheries

Commission• Island Hide-A-Way Campground

(Buxton, NC)• N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries• Oden’s Dock Marina (Hatteras, NC)• Avon Seafood (Hatteras, NC)• Vemco sales and support team• Knauss Fellowship Team / NOAA /

National Sea Grant Office

• Hans Vogelsong, ECU• Lauriston King• John Rummel• Steve Sellers• Eric Diaddorio• Mike Baker• Mark Keusenkothen• Sara Miribilio• Cecilia Krahforst• Andrea del’Apa• Katie Kleber• Lyndell Bade• Dan Furinsky• Tim Wamer• Jim Saupe• Gene Oakley• Chris Bonnerup• Garry Wright• Chuck Bangley• Craig Harms,DVM (NCSU)• Dorcas O’Rourke, DVM (ECU IACUC)• Tom Savoy (CTDEP)• Dewayne Fox (DSU)• Bill Hoffman (Mass. DMF)• Paul Music (WHOI)

And the friends, family, and colleagues whose names don’t fit!