Mississippi River Navigation Pool 19 depth & sidescan surveys for site-specific locations, 2024

Management of Grass Carp (Ctenopharyngodon Idella) has become of great interest to fisheries managers throughout multiple watersheds where they have become established. Grass Carp baits have been tested as part of an integrated pest management plan to aggregate fish and increase catchability. However, the habitats, water depth, and structures used by Grass Carp remain poorly characterized, especially in the Mississippi River. It’s important to understand Grass Carp habitat preferences and features to identify where Grass Carp can be aggregated and exploited during management efforts. Therefore, depth information and sidescan surveys were obtained for multiple locations within the Mississippi River Navigation Pool 19 to complement a concurrent grass carp field study. These data consist of depth measurements as 3D digital surface models (DSMs) and ascii files, and 2D sidescan image mosaics for four site-specific locations in the Mississippi River Navigation Pool 19. Site locations are Carthage Lake, Hass Island, Devils Island, and Montrose Flats. Cell resolutions are 1-m depth DSMs and 10-cm sidescan mosaics. A multibeam echosounder was used to acquire depth and sidescan sonar data for Carthage Lake and Hass Island. For the shallower depth sites Devils Island and Montrose Flats, a single-beam sonar and recreational grade fish finder were used for depth and sidescan acquisition. Overall, this data set will aid with habitat classifications to inform Grass Carp behavior associated with baiting locations in Mississippi River Navigation Pool 19.

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