DWR uses electricity to catch fish and ensure great fishing in Virginia

RICHMOND, Va. (WFXR) —

“You may’t see it. It’s electrical. Boogie, woogie, woogie….”

“Electrical Slide”

What does electrical energy should do with fishing?

In relation to fisheries administration and preserving Virginia’s world-class fishing useful resource, fairly a bit.

Electrofishing is a technique the Virginia Division of Wildlife Sources (DWR) makes use of to evaluate fish populations. A ship outfitted with specialised gear strikes via the water, passing a low-level electrical present alongside its path. The present is powerful sufficient to stun close by fish with out killing them. They then float to the floor the place they are often netted.

As soon as on the boat, the crew identifies every fish, takes measurements and scale and fin samples, and generally tags fish. What DWR crews be taught can inform them so much about what they should do to verify our numerous fisheries thrive.

The DWR was surveying hickory shad, American shad, blueback herring, alewife, and striped bass populations on the James River in downtown Richmond just lately. Numbers of these fish have seen fluctuations lately, so they’re monitored intently, and surveys are executed weekly throughout their annual spring runs.

“We’re attempting to get a deal with on the inhabitants of Alosines; these are the American shad, the hickory shad, the alewife, and the blueback herring,” mentioned DWR Fish Passage Coordinator Alan Weaver. “These fish are available in waves, they arrive in pulses, so by sampling weekly, we type of put the entire image collectively for the spring.”

Figuring out these numbers assist fisheries and biologists take motion to assist preserve fish populations in steadiness, and steadiness is essential. Every species is a crucial hyperlink within the ecosystem.

Take shad and herring, for instance. They’re born in rivers, swim out to sea, after which return to the rivers of their delivery each spring to spawn and repeat the method. Alongside the best way, they eat plankton, small fish, and different animals. In flip, they function meals for different fish, animals, birds, and even individuals. In case you lose any of these layers, the complete system suffers, and in some circumstances, it could even collapse.

That’s the reason preserving observe and managing these populations is so necessary.

“They could simply seem like little silverfish, however they’re extremely charismatic,” mentioned DWR Area One Aquatics Supervisor Clinton Morgeson. “They’re the cornerstone of those freshwater rivers alongside the Atlantic coast.”