Fish Tagging
Biomark PIT-Tagging Services
Biomark provides tagging services to the fisheries community. Trained biologists can visit your site to provide custom training for fish tagging, conduct small-scale tagging projects using our portable tagging equipment, or conduct large-scale tagging projects using our custom built tagging trailer.
During the past three years, Biomark has tagged over 2.5 million fish at state, federal and tribal hatcheries in the Columbia River Basin.
Methods
Tagging is conducted in the Biomark state-of-the-art self-contained tagging trailer. The tagging trailer is delivered and set up near the raceway or fish holding tank.
AC power is usually provided by the hatchery power source (50 amps of 220 VAC). However, generator power can be provided. Water is normally pumped from a head box or directly from the raceway. [more...] [...hide]
Water temperature is recorded as it enters the tagging trailer. Water temperature within the holding tank will be at ambient temperature and the re-circulated anesthetic water inside the tagging trailer should never be greater than 0.5°C above the ambient water temperature. Fish are transported to the tagging trailer from the hatchery raceways in buckets and placed in a 500 gal holding tank inside the tagging trailer.
Prior to tagging, fish are removed from the holding tank and placed in sinks containing anesthetic. The total capacity of the anesthetic system (tank, sinks, troughs, hoses, and pipes) is approximately 100 gal. Anesthetic water is re-circulated through a 10-25 micron filter to remove particulate matter and an ultraviolet light filter for viral and bacterial disinfections. The water contains MS-222 at a concentration of 45.0-50.0 mg/L. According to the manufacturer, these concentrations provide “moderately rapid anesthesia" and allow fish to be tagged within two minutes of being placed in an anesthetic sink. At this concentration, fish can be placed in the anesthetic for up to 30 minutes without risk of mortality.
Fish smaller than 60 mm fork length (FL) and fish displaying obvious signs of disease or injury are culled prior to tagging. Fish are also culled if they possess a tagging wound, but no tag is detected, due to the chance that a weak or damaged tag may have been implanted into the fish, which could interfere with a second implanted tag.
Fish are tagged with 12-mm Destron Fearing 134.2 kHz ISO PIT tags (TX1411SST) using a 12-gauge hypodermic needle fitted onto modified syringes. The trailer contains 4 tagging tables. Each table has a crew that consists of two taggers, one data collector (data collectors interrogate each tagged fish, measure their fork length using an electronic digitizing board, and note external signs of disease and injury), and two needle loaders. A full crew consists of approximately 22 persons.
Fish would be tagged using the techniques described in Prentice et al. (1990). This procedure involves piercing the body cavity at or near the ventral midline of a fish and inserting an RFID tag into the body cavity. Each fish is tagged at one of the four PIT-tag data collection stations where tag code, fish length, fish condition, weight if required, and raceway number will be stored using PITTAG3 software (Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission). Fish would be transferred from the tagging trailer to the holding raceway via a 10-cm diameter pipe.
New needles are used at each tagging site. Needles are used approximately 15-20 times and are disinfected in a 70% alcohol solution for approximately 10 minutes between each fish. The tagging trailer and all equipment (pipes, pumps, aprons, nets, needles and implanters etc.) are washed with chlorinated water (1% solution) prior to departing the tagging site, and subsequently rinsed at the next tagging site or using a non-hatchery potable water source.
Our tagging rate averages between 4,000 and 6,000 fish per day at each tagging table (per 5 person crew). We normally tag 16,000 to 24,000 fish per day with all 4 tagging stations operating. If weights are required, the tagging rate will be reduced.
Contact
For more information or scheduling please contact:
Biomark Sales Department
703 South Americana Blvd, Suite 150
Boise, Idaho 83702
208.275.0011 Phone
208.275.0031 Fax
Or, ask for:
Scott McCutcheon
Senior Fisheries Biologist
(208) 841-7401 Cell
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Transportation Program
Yearling Chinook salmon and Steelhead
The Corp of Engineers funded NOAA fisheries to study the benefits of transporting fish around hydroelectric facilities on the Columbia River using PIT tag technology. Biomark provided tagging services for yearling Chinook salmon and steelhead at a variety of hatcheries in the Mid-Columbia River from 2002 - 2004. Over 500,000 fish were PIT-tagged each year of this project. Hatcheries included: Leavenworth NFH as well as 5 Washington State Hatcheries (Wells, Eastbank, Chelan Falls, Methow, and Ringold.)
Sub-Yearling Fall Chinook salmon - Snake River
Biomark started a new project in 2005 providing tagging services for a COE funded project conducted by the USFWS and NOAA Fisheries. This multi-year project was designed to evaluate survival of endangered sub-yearling fall Chinook salmon transported around, and migration through hydroelectric dams on the Snake and Columbia Rivers. In 2005, approximately 170,000 fish were tagged at Dworshak NFH, transported to the Snake or Clearwater River, and released. These fish were reared in cold water to retard growth in order to mimic wild fish migration and survival.
The 2006 study will replicate the 2005 study and will also include additional production fish that will be tagged and released at several remote release facilities throughout the Snake and Clearwater Rivers.
Hanford Reach Pilot Study
In 2005, Biomark assisted Battelle NWL with a COE funded pilot study evaluating the feasibility of collecting and tagging wild sub-yearling fall Chinook salmon in the Hanford reach of the Columbia River. Valuable information was gained for future proposed projects concerning timing, collection methods, and equipment requirements.
Colville Tribe
The Colville Confederated Tribe in North-Central Washington is involved in restoring salmon and steelhead within their reservation. Biomark has tagged between 10,000 and 20,000 steelhead each year from 2003 through 2005.
Columbia River Inter Tribal Fisheries Commission
In 2004, CRITFC contracted Biomark to tag and release hatchery reared sub-yearling fall Chinook salmon at Priest Rapids Hatchery and compare those to a group of wild sub-yearling fall Chinook salmon captured in the Hanford Reach of the Columbia River. A replication of this project is proposed for 2006.