For example, one video captured a school of yellow jack. When the warmest seawater temperatures were recorded in late August, fish more typical of the southeastern United States were observed around the cages. Each time the cameras were deployed and retrieved, the team took environmental measurements including temperature, salinity and dissolved oxygen. Spider crabs are the most common invertebrates seen in videos. In addition to the “big four,” summer flounder, butterfish, banded rudderfish, and sea robins have also been observed using this habitat. Understanding how these species use habitat is important, as black sea bass and scup are commercial species, and locally, tautog supports a recreational fishery. For example, transient scup use them opportunistically, while juvenile black sea bass seem to live around the cages. However, these fish use the cages differently. Biological technicians Paul Clark and Gillian Phillips are now in the midst of the most time consuming and rewarding aspect of this project – the video review and data analysis.Īs Gillian and Paul review the videos, they most frequently see four common Long Island Sound fish species around the cages: black sea bass, scup, tautog (blackfish), and cunner. Study sites included an active shellfish lease and the Charles Island rock reef. Collecting Video and First Impressionsįrom May through September 2018, a team of scientists and research divers collected 27 hours of underwater video per week in Long Island Sound during the project’s second field season. The project, funded by the NOAA Office of Aquaculture and the Northeast Fisheries Science Center, grew out of these observations, and intends to find out if oyster cages provide habitat. Many fish are attracted to structure, whether natural or artificial, and members of the aquaculture industry have long reported finding fish and invertebrates around their cages. These cages allow growers to efficiently use the seafloor with a smaller footprint as well as keep their valuable product safe from predators. Oyster growers often cultivate oysters in off-bottom vertical cages under water. Scientists at the NOAA Fisheries Northeast Fisheries Science Center's Milford Laboratory are using GoPro cameras to determine if oyster cages used in shellfish aquaculture provide similar habitat for fish to naturally occurring rock reefs.
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