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Effects of strobe lights on the behaviour of freshwater fishes

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Abstract

When dealing with invasive fishes, permanent barriers may be best in preventing spread; however, they may not be feasible due to various costs and/or logistical constraints. Alternatively, various non-permanent barriers using electricity, light, sound, pressure, bubbles, and CO2 are being developed and deployed in efforts to limit the spread of aquatic invasive species or to achieve fish guidance and conservation. However, the effectiveness of these barriers is quite variable, and testing is often lacking for both target and non-target species. We conducted a series of laboratory trials to examine the effects of strobe light on behaviour of Common Carp, Brown Bullhead, and Largemouth Bass. In response to strobe lights, Common Carp and Brown Bullhead stayed significantly farther away compared to the control period and resumed their normal activity once the strobe light was turned off. This suggests that strobe lights may prove to be a useful fish deterrent in the field. Our results also highlight the importance of examining the response of both target and non-target species when evaluating fish deterrent technologies.

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Acknowledgements

This study was funded by the Asian Carp Program at Fisheries and Oceans Canada. Field staff at Fisheries and Oceans Canada included David Marson, Kyle Havart-Crans, Justin Barbati, Jason Barnucz, Caitlyn Bondy, Paul Bzonek, D’Arcy Campbell, Catherine Chandler, Mike Clark, Monica Choy, Hadi Dhiyebi, Katarina Doughty, Bradley Doyle, Sydonie Epifani, Robin Gaspardy, Mike Gioseffi, Julie Henry, Meagan Kindree, Ben Kissner, Aaron Law, Liz Miller, Ally Noel, Mike Parna, Alex Price, Edyta Ratajczyk, Natalie Rook, Ashna Tanna, and Nicole Wiemann. Experiments were conducted at Aquatic Life Research Facility, Canada Centre for Inland Waters with logistic support from Alicia Mehlenbacher, Quintin Rochfort, and Jaclyn Gugelyk at Environment and Climate Change Canada. We thank Andrew Court, Jennifer Bowman, and Tys Theysmeyer at Royal Botanical Garden and fishway operation for providing some fish for our experiments. A Visiting Fellowship from Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), funded by the DFO Asian Carp Program, was provided to JK. This study was conducted according to Animal Use Protocol approved by Animal Care Committee at Canada Centre for Inland Waters.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fisheries and Oceans Canada, 867 Lakeshore Road, Burlington, ON, L7S 1A1, Canada

    Jaewoo Kim & Nicholas E. Mandrak

  2. Department of Biological Sciences, University of Toronto Scarborough, 1265 Military Trail, Toronto, ON, M1C 1A4, Canada

    Jaewoo Kim & Nicholas E. Mandrak

  3. Golder Associates Ltd., 2535 3rd Avenue S.E, Calgary, AB, T2A 7W5, Canada

    Jaewoo Kim

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  1. Jaewoo Kim
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Correspondence to Jaewoo Kim.

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Kim, J., Mandrak, N.E. Effects of strobe lights on the behaviour of freshwater fishes. Environ Biol Fish 100, 1427–1434 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-017-0653-7

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