Stationary sonic receivers are mounted to stands and submersed in the upper Illinois River. A network of receivers are deployed in a 60-mile reach of the Illinois River immediately below the aquatic nuisance species electectric dispersal barrier. - FWS photo

Sonic transmitters are surgically implanted into bighead and silver carp to track their movements and dispersal in the upper Illinois River. - FWS photo

Submersed receivers must be retrieved each month so that movement data from telemetered fish can be downloaded and reviewed. - FWS photo

Carterville NFWCO has initiated a project to track the dispersal and movements of bighead and silver carps in the upper Illinois River.  The project is intended to function as an early detection monitoring tool to alert biologist of movements of tagged fish towards the aquatic nuisance species electric dispersal barrier (and the Great Lakes) and as an informational tool to provide a better understanding of the movements and dispersal patterns of bighead and silver carps as they colonize new portions of the Illinois River.

A network of stationary receivers has been deployed in a 60-mile reach of the Illinois River immediately below the dispersal barrier.  The twelve receivers continuously record data from bighead and silver carps that have been tagged with surgically implanted sonic transmitters.  Biologists tagged 8 bighead carp, 7 silver carp, and 1 hybrid carp in the Starved Rock pool, and 1 bighead carp in the Marseilles pool in April 2007.  Additional sampling in July resulted in the observation of several jumping adult silver carp in the Marseilles pool and the collection of one adult silver carp in the Dresden Island pool.  Silver carp had not previously been documented above the Starved Rock pool.  Water and air temperatures were too high to surgically implant a transmitter into the collected silver carp.  Additional sampling is scheduled for October 2007 to tag additional bighead and silver carps.

Data have been downloaded from the receivers four times since fish were tagged in April.  Although this project is just getting off the ground, some interesting results have already been obtained this summer.  The one bighead carp tagged in the Marseilles pool was detected moving downriver into the Starved Rock pool in early June and then back up into the Marseilles pool just two weeks later.  Fortunately, no other fish have been observed moving between pools or nearer to the dispersal barrier.

Many partner agencies from the aquatic nuisance species dispersal barrier advisory panel have joined Carterville NFWCO in the development and implementation of this project.  Our partners include the LaCrosse NFWCO, Rock Island Ecological Services Field Office, Illinois Natural History Survey Illinois River Biological Station (INHS), Southern Illinois University (SIU), and the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers Chicago and Rock Island districts (USACE).  The INHS and USACE retrieve the stationary receivers each month and download the movement data.  The data are forwarded to SIU, where researchers process the data, provide a summary of the monthly movements to Carterville NFWCO, and archive the data in an on-line database and GIS viewer (http://fishdata.siu.edu/passage/viewer.htm).  Carterville NFWCO provides periodic summaries on the project to the dispersal barrier advisory panel and immediately notifies members if upriver interpool movements of tagged fish are detected.  Many thanks to all our partners who have taken ownership in this project and make this project possible!