Experimental Examination of Surgical Procedures for Implanting Sonic Transmitters in Juvenile Shortnose Sturgeon and Atlantic Sturgeon

Abstract

Abstract Acoustic telemetry has become a leading tool for monitoring the movements of and habitat use by many sturgeon species worldwide; however, procedures for internal tagging of small juvenile sturgeon (<55 cm TL) are lacking. We examined effects of implantation technique on growth, tag retention, and survival of juvenile (<55 cm) Shortnose Sturgeon Acipenser brevirostrum and Atlantic Sturgeon A. oxyrinchus by using dummy acoustic tags. Two implantation techniques were used: (1) anchoring the tag to the wall of the peritoneal cavity and (2) no internal anchoring of the tag. These treatment groups were compared with two control groups: fish that received anesthetic only and fish that received anesthetic and an incision. Retention rate was significantly higher for anchored tags (88%) than for nonanchored tags (25%) in Shortnose Sturgeon juveniles, while Atlantic Sturgeon juveniles retained 100% of tags regardless of treatment. Nonanchored tags that were lost during the second week were expelled through ...