Response of upstream migrating juvenile European eel (Anguilla anguilla) to electric fields: application of the marginal gains concept to fish screening
Response of upstream migrating juvenile European eel (Anguilla anguilla) to electric fields: application of the marginal gains concept to fish screening
The decline in European eel (Anguilla anguilla) recruitment over the past half-century is partly due to river infrastructure that delays or blocks upstream migration to rearing habitat. Stimuli, such as electricity, can be used to modify the behaviour of downstream moving fish and guide them to preferred routes of passage at river infrastructure; but research on upstream migrating juvenile eel remains limited. The response of upstream migrating juvenile eel exposed to pulsed direct current (PDC) electric fields was investigated using a recirculatory flume. Eel were presented a choice of two routes upstream under either: (1) a treatment condition, in which the selection of one route resulted in exposure to High Electric Field (HEF) strength that was between 1.5–2 times stronger than the Low Electric Field (LEF) strength encountered in the alternative route; or (2) a control in which the electric field was absent in both routes. Under the treatment, five different mean HEF strengths (0.53, 0.77, 1.22, 2.17 and 3.74 Vcm-1) were tested at one of two frequencies (2 and 10 Hz). Route choice, distance downstream of the first set of electrodes at which an initial response was observed and avoidance behaviours (acceleration, retraction, switching and rejection) were compared among treatments. For the 1.22, 2.17 and 3.74 Vcm-1 and under 2 Hz, eel preferred to pass the LEF route. Avoidance was greater in the HEF route and positively related to field strength. The distance of the initial response did not differ between routes, field strengths or frequency. Upstream migrating eel avoided electric fields indicating potential to develop this approach for fish guidance. Further work is needed to test prototypes in field settings, particularly in combination with traditional physical screens to water intakes as part of a process of applying the concept of marginal gains to advance environmental impact mitigation technology.
Miller, Mhairi
eaa273db-109e-4e57-9346-192c1ef977c3
Sharkh, Suleiman M.
c8445516-dafe-41c2-b7e8-c21e295e56b9
Kemp, Paul S.
9e33fba6-cccf-4eb5-965b-b70e72b11cd7
30 June 2022
Miller, Mhairi
eaa273db-109e-4e57-9346-192c1ef977c3
Sharkh, Suleiman M.
c8445516-dafe-41c2-b7e8-c21e295e56b9
Kemp, Paul S.
9e33fba6-cccf-4eb5-965b-b70e72b11cd7
Miller, Mhairi, Sharkh, Suleiman M. and Kemp, Paul S.
(2022)
Response of upstream migrating juvenile European eel (Anguilla anguilla) to electric fields: application of the marginal gains concept to fish screening.
PLoS ONE, 17 (June), [e0270573].
(doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0270573).
Abstract
The decline in European eel (Anguilla anguilla) recruitment over the past half-century is partly due to river infrastructure that delays or blocks upstream migration to rearing habitat. Stimuli, such as electricity, can be used to modify the behaviour of downstream moving fish and guide them to preferred routes of passage at river infrastructure; but research on upstream migrating juvenile eel remains limited. The response of upstream migrating juvenile eel exposed to pulsed direct current (PDC) electric fields was investigated using a recirculatory flume. Eel were presented a choice of two routes upstream under either: (1) a treatment condition, in which the selection of one route resulted in exposure to High Electric Field (HEF) strength that was between 1.5–2 times stronger than the Low Electric Field (LEF) strength encountered in the alternative route; or (2) a control in which the electric field was absent in both routes. Under the treatment, five different mean HEF strengths (0.53, 0.77, 1.22, 2.17 and 3.74 Vcm-1) were tested at one of two frequencies (2 and 10 Hz). Route choice, distance downstream of the first set of electrodes at which an initial response was observed and avoidance behaviours (acceleration, retraction, switching and rejection) were compared among treatments. For the 1.22, 2.17 and 3.74 Vcm-1 and under 2 Hz, eel preferred to pass the LEF route. Avoidance was greater in the HEF route and positively related to field strength. The distance of the initial response did not differ between routes, field strengths or frequency. Upstream migrating eel avoided electric fields indicating potential to develop this approach for fish guidance. Further work is needed to test prototypes in field settings, particularly in combination with traditional physical screens to water intakes as part of a process of applying the concept of marginal gains to advance environmental impact mitigation technology.
Text
journal.pone.0270573
- Version of Record
More information
Accepted/In Press date: 14 June 2022
Published date: 30 June 2022
Additional Information:
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 Miller et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 467735
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/467735
ISSN: 1932-6203
PURE UUID: 45fc1055-5fa2-43fc-903a-3f6895d92922
Catalogue record
Date deposited: 21 Jul 2022 16:52
Last modified: 17 Mar 2024 03:00
Export record
Altmetrics
Contributors
Author:
Mhairi Miller
Download statistics
Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.
View more statistics
