Abstract
AbstractWe evaluated methods of minimizing mechanical injury to Walleye Pollock Gadus chalcogrammus when tagging them with external identification tags. Walleye Pollock (20–62 cm FL) were captured with hook and line near Auke Bay, Southeast Alaska, and were tagged with either T-bar anchor tags or lock-on tags, which were anticipated to be used for tagging studies in the Gulf of Alaska and Bering Sea. The tested handling procedures included transferring the tagged fish between live tanks either by using a dip net (dipnetted group) or with wet, bare hands (non-dipnetted group). Sixty percent of the dipnetted fish (63 of 105) died, whereas 12% of the non-dipnetted fish (17 of 138) died. Overall, 50% of the deaths occurred within 7 d after capture, and 89% of the deaths occurred within 10 d after capture. Of the dipnetted fish that died, 68% (n = 43) died from dermal infection due to scale loss, whereas 30% of the non-dipnetted fish mortalities were from dermal infection. Additionally, injuries that were reco...
Highlights
We evaluated methods of minimizing mechanical injury to Walleye Pollock Gadus chalcogrammus when tagging them with external identification tags
The Walleye Pollock Gadus chalcogrammus is the dominant species in the commercial groundfish catch off Alaska
The results of the present study demonstrate that use of a dip net to handle Walleye Pollock resulted in higher mortality than using wet hands
Summary
We evaluated methods of minimizing mechanical injury to Walleye Pollock Gadus chalcogrammus when tagging them with external identification tags. Walleye Pollock (20–62 cm FL) were captured with hook and line near Auke Bay, Southeast Alaska, and were tagged with either T-bar anchor tags or lock-on tags, which were anticipated to be used for tagging studies in the Gulf of Alaska and Bering Sea. The tested handling procedures included transferring the tagged fish between live tanks either by using a dip net (dipnetted group) or with wet, bare hands (non-dipnetted group). Recommended procedures for capturing and tagging Walleye Pollock include the use of hook and line and the use of wet, bare hands (or a similar lowabrasion approach) when handling the fish. In September 1982, the Northwest and Alaska Fisheries Center (NWAFC) tagged approximately 7,000 Walleye Pollock that were caught via trawling on the southeastern shelf of the Bering Sea; four fish were recovered, all from the same shelf/slope region NWAFC, personal communication cited by Dawson 1989)
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