Document Type
Article
Department/Program
Virginia Institute of Marine Science
Publication Date
11-19-2017
Journal
Animal Biotelemetry
Volume
5
First Page
29
Abstract
Pop-up satellite archival tags (PSATs) are a valuable tool for estimating mortality of pelagic fishes released from commercial and recreational fishing gears. However, the high cost of PSATs limits sample sizes, resulting in low-precision post-release mortality estimates with little management applicability. We evaluate the performance of a lower-cost PSAT designed to enable large-scale post-release mortality studies. The tag uses solar rather than battery power, does not include a depth sensor, and transmits daily summaries of light and temperature data rather than high-resolution habitat profiles, contributing to a substantially lower per-unit price. We assessed the tag’s ability to detect mortality while also estimating the post-release mortality of juvenile (119–< 185 cm) Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) caught using light-tackle angling methods along the US east coast.
DOI
10.1186/s40317-017-0144-9
Recommended Citation
Goldsmith, William M.; Scheld, Andrew M.; and Graves, John, Performance of a low-cost, solar-powered pop-up satellite archival tag for assessing post-release mortality of Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) caught in the US east coast light-tackle recreational fishery (2017). Animal Biotelemetry, 5, 29.
10.1186/s40317-017-0144-9
