Svein Løkkeborg

EFFECTS OF SEISMIC SHOOTING AND VESSEL-GENERATED NOISE ON FISH BEHAVIOUR AND CATCH RATES

Carlson, T.J. & Popper, A.N. (1997). Using Sound to Modify Fish Behaviour at PowerProduction and Water-Control Facilities: A Workshop. Phase II Final Report. DOE/ BP 62611-11, U.S. Department of Energy, Bonneville Power Administration. Portland, OR. Coutant, C.C. (2001a) Behavioural Technologies for Fish Guidance. American Fisheries Society, Bethesda, MD. Coutant, C.C. (2001b) Turbulent attraction flows for guiding juvenile salmonids at dams. In Behavioural Technologies for Fish Guidance (C. C. Coutant, ed.). American Fisheries Society, Bethesda, MD. Kynard, B. (1984) Studies of downrunning adult alosids in the Holyoke Dam canal system 1983. Final Report to Northeast Utilities Service Company, Berlin, CT. Mann, D.A., Higgs, D.M., Tavolga, W.N., Souza, M.J. & Popper, A.N. (2001) Ultrasound detection by clupeiform fish. J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 109, 3048-3054. Odeh, M. (1999) Innovations in Fish Passage Technology. American Fisheries Society, Bethesda, MD. Office of Technology Assessment (1995) Fish Passage Technologies: Protection at Hydropower Facilities. U.S. Congress, Office of Technology Assessment Report OTA-ENV-641, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. Ploskey, G.R., Schilt, C.R., Hanks, M.E., Skalski, J.R., Nagy, W.T., Patterson, D.S. & Kim, J. (In preparation). Hydroacoustic evaluation of fish passage at Bonneville Dam in 2000. Technical Report EL of the U.S. Army Research and Development Center, Waterways Experiment Station, Vicksburg, MS. Popper, A.N. (1995) Fish Sensory Responses: Prospects for Developing Behavioural Guidance Technologies. U.S. Congress, Office of Technology Assessment Report OTA-ENV-641, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. Popper, A.N. & Carlson, T.J. (1998). Application of sound and other stimuli to control fish behavior. Trans. Am. Fish. Soc. 127, 673-707.

Effects of Sounds From Seismic Air Guns on Fish Behavior and Catch Rates

Seismic surveys are performed to explore for oil and gas resources. During these surveys, air guns are discharged about every 10-15 s and sound pulses with a short rise time and very high peak sound pressure level (SPL) are emitted (source levels at ∼250 dB re 1 µPa). Concerns have been raised about the impacts of seismic air gun emissions on marine life, and fishermen in particular claim that seismic surveys have a serious negative influence on fish distribution and commercial catch rates due to avoidance responses.

Workshop Three: Approaches to Behavioral Analysis of Responses to High-Energy Acoustic Sources

The behavioral effects of high-energy acoustic sources such as pile driving, seismic surveys, explosions, and sonar on marine mammals and fish have received increasing attention by scientists, policy makers, and stakeholders. In both mammals and fish, behavioral responses can potentially occur at relatively low levels of noise exposure and, therefore, impact zones can be quite large. These responses may prevent marine mammals and fish from reaching breeding or spawning sites, finding food, and acoustically locating mates. Any of these effects could lead to potential long-term effects on reproduction and population parameters. In the case of fish, avoidance reactions can also result in displacement away from potential fishing grounds and might result in reduced catches. Studies have been undertaken using a variety of methodologies ranging from purely qualitative observations to controlled laboratory experiments.