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What are Forage Fish?
Surf Smelt are Forage Fish
Surf Smelt spawn on the beach
Surf Smelt spawn throughout Puget Sound
Winter spawning
peak
Summer spawning
peak
Study Inspiration
Study Questions
+
?
1.) Can we mark Surf Smelt
without killing them?
- Holding Trial
Tag Selection
+
?
• Selected Visible
Implant Elastomer
(VIE) tags
• Low cost
• Minimally invasive
• Easy to use
• Non-toxic
Visible Implant Elastomer (VIE) Tag
Holding Trial
Captured smelt with beach seine
119 marked smelt held for 3 weeks
Results:
Tag Retention: 100%
Survival: 92%
Study Questions
+
?
1.) Can we mark Surf Smelt
without killing them?
- Holding Trial
2.) Can we mark and
recapture Surf Smelt in the
wild? - Field Trial
You are here
Capture Sites
1 2
Field Trial
Field Trial
Step 1: Catch Smelt
4 Tag locations
Field Trial
Step 2: Tag with site & date specific marks
Step 3: Record biological data
Field Trial
Field Trial
Step 4: Release marked smelt
Field Trial
Step 5: Repeat monthly 1.
2.
3.
4.
0
2000
4000
6000
8000
10000
12000
Tagg
ed
Sm
elt
at
Larg
e
Unknown
Female
MaleAverage Male to Female Ratio 4:1
Results: Tagged Smelt at Large
Smelt Tagged
Total: 9,997
Results: Recaptures
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
Nu
mb
er
of
Sme
lt R
eca
ptu
red
Months After Tagging
Female
Male
Study Questions
+
?
1.) Can we mark Surf Smelt
without killing them?
- Holding Trial
2.) Can we mark and
recapture Surf Smelt in the
wild? - Field Trial
3.)What can we learn about
their movements and biology
using these methods?
What did we learn?
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
Nu
mb
er
of
Sme
lt R
eca
ptu
red
Months After Tagging
Female
Male
Ø
What we learned
Surf Smelt are hardy enough to mark with VIE tags
Adult Surf Smelt retain VIE tags up to 9 months
Individual Surf Smelt will spawn multiple times on multiple beaches in the same region
Differential spawning frequency may explain the male biased sex ratios observed
What’s next?:
What happened to the other 9,927 smelt?
If they left the region, where did they go?
If they stay in the region, should we manage them regionally?
Can we enhance smelt creel surveys by combining with tagging efforts?
Can we learn more about other Puget Sound species using similar methods?
January
February March
April
August 17, 2015
More Questions!
Questions?