Passage, Migration and Critical Habitat of Atlantic (Acipenser oxyrhinchus oxyrhinchus) and Shortnose (Acipenser brevirostrum) Sturgeons in New England Waters
USGS scientists are studying the passage, migration and critical habitat of the Atlantic (Acipenser oxyrhinchus oxyrhinchus) and shortnose (Acipenser brevirostrum) sturgeon in New England waters to provide managers with population-specific details upon which effective steps can be taken to protect these endangered species.
What is the issue?
Atlantic and shortnose sturgeon move extensively between coastal and river habitats in New England. Blocked rivers and water-flow regulation from the operation of dams and hydropower facilities impede the movement of sturgeon and thus reduce the habitat available to these endangered fish.
What’s at stake?
- Both Atlantic and shortnose sturgeon are in danger of extinction and are protected under the Endangered Species Act.
- The sturgeons’ inability to move freely is a concern for all New England sturgeon populations and likely impedes population recovery.
- Gaining a better understanding regarding where Atlantic and shortnose sturgeons originate and move in New England’s rivers provides invaluable data for developing informed and effective conservation efforts, especially as individual populations require targeted measures to protect them.
What is our approach?
USGS scientists capture and tag wild specimens of Atlantic and shortnose sturgeon to:
- Establish remote detection arrays to identify routine movements, critical habitat, spawning success, passage and inter-basin interactions.
- Examine individual sturgeon for their tolerance of routine handling (tagging and tissue sampling); evidence of interactions with their environment, such as injury, predator encounters, and illness; and assessment of condition (foraging behaviors, blood chemistry, reproductive status).
What are the benefits?
- Documenting movement patterns and behaviors of endangered Atlantic and shortnose sturgeon is crucial to understanding critical population requirements and to identifying vulnerabilities that may be reduced through management.
- Telemetry data documenting broad-scale movements are shared in a community network accessible to other scientists and investigators, allowing a better understanding of riverine and coastal movements. This information has proven to be critical to both state and federal natural resource managers tasked with processing requests for bridge construction or bank stabilization permits. It also provides a greater understanding of migratory patterns when combined with collaborating researcher’s datasets.
- Genetic tissue samples are stored in a USGS-based archive and available for legitimate scientific study.
USGS scientists are studying the passage, migration and critical habitat of the Atlantic (Acipenser oxyrhinchus oxyrhinchus) and shortnose (Acipenser brevirostrum) sturgeon in New England waters to provide managers with population-specific details upon which effective steps can be taken to protect these endangered species.
What is the issue?
Atlantic and shortnose sturgeon move extensively between coastal and river habitats in New England. Blocked rivers and water-flow regulation from the operation of dams and hydropower facilities impede the movement of sturgeon and thus reduce the habitat available to these endangered fish.
What’s at stake?
- Both Atlantic and shortnose sturgeon are in danger of extinction and are protected under the Endangered Species Act.
- The sturgeons’ inability to move freely is a concern for all New England sturgeon populations and likely impedes population recovery.
- Gaining a better understanding regarding where Atlantic and shortnose sturgeons originate and move in New England’s rivers provides invaluable data for developing informed and effective conservation efforts, especially as individual populations require targeted measures to protect them.
What is our approach?
USGS scientists capture and tag wild specimens of Atlantic and shortnose sturgeon to:
- Establish remote detection arrays to identify routine movements, critical habitat, spawning success, passage and inter-basin interactions.
- Examine individual sturgeon for their tolerance of routine handling (tagging and tissue sampling); evidence of interactions with their environment, such as injury, predator encounters, and illness; and assessment of condition (foraging behaviors, blood chemistry, reproductive status).
What are the benefits?
- Documenting movement patterns and behaviors of endangered Atlantic and shortnose sturgeon is crucial to understanding critical population requirements and to identifying vulnerabilities that may be reduced through management.
- Telemetry data documenting broad-scale movements are shared in a community network accessible to other scientists and investigators, allowing a better understanding of riverine and coastal movements. This information has proven to be critical to both state and federal natural resource managers tasked with processing requests for bridge construction or bank stabilization permits. It also provides a greater understanding of migratory patterns when combined with collaborating researcher’s datasets.
- Genetic tissue samples are stored in a USGS-based archive and available for legitimate scientific study.