The Behavioral Ecology Branch have established moorings with acoustic receivers at various locations throughout the Navesink River that will be used to measure the movements of tagged bluefish, weakfish and striped bass. The acoustic tags that will be surgically implanted in the fish operate like EZ-pass tags while the acoustic receivers operate as EZ-pass tag readers that continuously listen for tagged fish in the river. We have also placed hydrographic instruments on many of the moorings that measure temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, current speed and direction, tidal height and turbidity. These instruments along with boat surveys using gill nets and hydroacoustics will allow us to map factors that may determine why fish use different parts of the estuary during different times of day and different seasons. By combining this information, we will hope to determine how different parts of the river are used by fish to meet their needs for growth, health and reproduction.

The tagged fish will have external tags with fish ID # and a contact phone #. If you catch one we’d like to know where and when you caught it, and if it was taken or released. You can also enter & view tag data online at the Cooperative Tagging Program. Please feel free to contact us if you have questions or need more information.

Project Publications/Presentations

• ICES manuscript (pdf ~2Mb)
  Estuarine habitat dynamics and telemetered movements of three pelagic fishes: Scale, complexity, behavioral flexibility and the development of an ecophysiological framework.
  
  
• PowerPoint Presentation (~26Mb)
  Estuarine habitat dynamics & movements of 3 apex predators
  

Contact: Dr. John Manderson: 732-872-3057 or Dr. Beth Phelan: 732-872-3079

The flash presentation below shows the acoustic occurrance of 5 tagged bluefish (Bluefish 1, Bluefish 2, ...) over a 30-day period. [Get Flash plug-in if needed]

• Related study with Winter Flounder - Rutgers University