D.W. Rondorf
S.D. Evans
J.E. Kelly
R.W. Perry
N.S. Adams
1998
<p><span>Radiotelemetry data are often used to make inferences about an entire study population; therefore, the transmitter attachment method should be the one that least affects the study animal. Juvenile chinook salmon (</span><i>Oncorhynchus tshawytscha</i><span>) <120 mm in fork length (FL) with either gastrically or surgically implanted transmitters had significantly lower critical swimming speeds than control fish 1 and 19-23 days after tagging. For fish >120 mm FL, fish with gastric implants swam as well as controls 1 day but not 19-23 days after tagging. In contrast, fish with surgical implants swam as well as controls 19-23 days but not 1 day after tagging. During predation trials, fish with gastric or surgical implants were eaten by smallmouth bass (</span><i>Micropterus dolomieu</i><span>) in significantly greater numbers than controls. We do not recommend implanting transmitters (representing 4.6-10.4% of the fish's body weight) in fish <120 mm FL. Furthermore, surgical implants (representing 2.2-5.6% of the fish's body weight) may be the preferred method for biotelemetry studies of juvenile chinook salmon >120 mm FL.</span></p>
application/pdf
10.1139/f97-285
en
Canadian Science Publishing
Effects of surgically and gastrically implanted radio transmitters on swimming performance and predator avoidance of juvenile chinook salmon (<i>Oncorhynchus tshawytscha</i>)
article