Lingcod (Ophiodon elongatus) populations along the West Coast of North America have recovered from overfishing, but the status of genetically distinct lingcod in Puget Sound, Washington is less clear. This project will use small-scale lingcod releases to learn about the benefits and risks of using stock enhancement as a tool to help rebuild marine fish populations. We have conducted experiments to improve rearing methods, improve release methods, and learn about lingcod life history, and are proceeding with a before-after-control-impact study that will quantify ecological impacts on wild fishes. WDFW collaborates on this project by conducting creel surveys. This project has been or is currently supported by the Science Consortium for Ocean Replenishment, the Puget Sound Recreational Fisheries Enhancement Fund, and NOAA Aquaculture. Previous or present partners include the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission, the Nisqually Tribe, WDFW, and the Washington SCUBA Alliance. Data on effects of acoustic tags on hatchery lingcod feeding and movement.

We have been using and continue to use acoustic telemetry methods to monitor the movement behavior and define habitat use of groundfish species in and out of Puget Sound waters. Detections of individual fishes has been collected at small and large scales over short and long term periods. We have data on sixgill and sevengill sharks, spiny dogfish, lingcod, copper, quillback, yellowtail and black rockfish, and spotted ratfish. These data are being used to describe the spatio-temporal patterns of behaviors expressed by top predators and other important members of the groundfish community in Puget Sound and along the West Coast. We intend for this information to inform the strength of inter- and intra-specific interactions quantified by ecosystem-scale models as well as the development of models used to determine the efficacy of spatial management strategies such as Marine Protected Areas. This has been a research topic since 2003, and will continue with work on listed species such as yelloweye and canary rockfish. Acoustic telemetry data for lingcod.

Integrated acoustic and trawl surveys are used to assess the distribution, biomass, and biology of Pacific hake along the Pacific coasts of the United States and Canada. Scientists from the Northwest Fisheries Science Center (NWFSC) and Department of Fisheries and Oceans-Canada are responsible for conducting the survey. The survey consists of a series of transects that are oriented generally east-west, and are spaced at a nominal 10-nautical mile interval. Sea depth at the nearshore end of individual transects is typically 50 m; offshore extents are typically at a depth of 1,500 m. Geographical coverage extends from near Morro Bay, CA north to Dixon Entrance. Acoustic data are collected during daylight hours with a Simrad EK60 scientific echo sounder coupled with the ER60 software system. Trawl samples from pelagic and bottom trawls are used to classify the observed backscatter layers to species and size composition and to collect specimens of Pacific hake and other organisms. Analysis of acoustic data involves identification and delineation of backscatter layers that are attributed to Pacific hake. The biomass estimate and length-at-age composition of Pacific hake generated from this survey are used in analysis and management of the stock. This survey is conducted on a biennial basis. There is a firm deadline for producing the biomass estimate in the middle of the December following the survey. Biological data collected from FSCS during catch processing.

This data release contains the methodology and results of two field experiments performed in 2024 to better understand how predation impacts detection efficiency of acoustic tags. The first experiment was a static approach focusing on how different tag types, tag power, depth distance to passive receivers, and predation would affect detection efficiency. It utilized both tagged yellow perch (Perca flavescens) as well as double-crested cormorants (Phalacrocorax auritus) that had "consumed" a tagged yellow perch. The second experiment was designed to simulate cormorant diving activity and determined how that behavior and tags with different nominal signal delays affected detection efficiency.

In 2015, a spawning ground acoustic survey that follows the design of the fishery-independent acoustic survey was initiated. This survey is the result of a partnership between DFO and fishery associations. The survey design uses random parallel transects within predefined strata. Surveys are conducted by fishermen in the fall fishing season according to protocols developed by DFO. The survey is conducted at night, during the weekend fishery closures except in Herring fishing area 16C and 16E in 2015 to 2017, where this region didn’t have weekend closures. The spawning ground acoustic survey is meant to provide a nightly estimate of spawning biomass among regions. It is analyzed in the same manner as the fishery-independent acoustic survey. The catches from the experimental nets are used to calibrate the spawning group specific target strength in order to obtain the nightly estimates of spawning biomass.

Fisheries acoustics data are collected from more than 200 sea-days each year aboard the FRV DELAWARE II and FRV ALBATROSS IV (decommissioned) and the FSV Henry B. Bigelow during pelagic, bottom-trawl, and marine mammal surveys. Acoustic sampling operations include continuous measurements using hull-mounted transducers and multi-frequency scientific echosounders. Biological sampling with midwater and bottom trawls, and underwater video deployments is conducted to verify species-specific backscatter and characterize sea-floor habitat. In-situ and laboratory experiments aid in understanding species-specific acoustic measurements. We are continuously developing, testing, and evaluating advanced sampling technologies during laboratory and field experiments to improve abundance estimates and map spatial and temporal distributions of fish and invertebrates. Acoustic, optic, and biological data are audited and archived in the NEFSC relational data management system.

Raw data from Vemco receivers that monitored the Kaneohe, Oahu nursery grounds while tagged juvenile snapper were released in 2006 (cultured) and 2007 (wild). Also included are raw temperature time series from thermographs mounted 5m above the bottom with the receiver.

The collection and analysis of passive acoustic data supports research into the soundscape of marine environments. Primary uses include detecting and characterizing sounds produced and used by living marine resources, natural sources of noise from physical oceanographic processes, and anthropogenic noise sources that contribute to the overall ocean noise environment. This analysis supports a wide range of activities including marine mammal stock assessments, monitoring of earthquake and geological activity, and assessing impacts of anthropogenic noise on marine life. The goal of this collection is to steward an accessible national archive of passive acoustic data available to researchers and the public, and to assist NOAA in meeting their data management and accessibility requirements.

To determine movements of green turtles in the nearshore foraging areas, we deployed acoustic tags and determined their movements through active and passive acoustic telemetry in San Diego Bay and the Long Beach area.

The NEFSC Advanced Sampling Technologies Research Group conducts annual fisheries acoustic surveys using state-of-the-art acoustic, midwater trawling, and underwater video technologies to improve fisheries-independent stock assessments for pelagic species. Pilot and experimental studies were conducted during 1995-97 to develop the NEFSC's fisheries acoustic capabilities. Annual NEFSC Atlantic Herring Acoustic Surveys began in 1998. NEFSC acoustic capabilities include multifrequency EK60 echosounder data, Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP), and trawl monitoring systems. Midwater trawling, plankton sampling, and underwater video operations provide biological samples and target verification. CTD (conductivity-temperature-depth) vertical profiles are also routinely obtained during survey operations.