Moffat pulling larval traps out for study - from Lambton Shores Fish Adventure, Facebook
If you spot a small orange buoy in the Old Ausable Channel this summer – you might be seeing a scientific study at work! A group of research students are working to track the movements of local threatened and endangered fish populations.
Madeline Morrison & Jennifer Powell are PHD Students at University of Toronto Scarborough, and Madeline Boys and Katie Moffat are Undergrad Students at Chapman Lab at McGill University.
Through a fund from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, the group are studying the environments of two species, says Powell
The buoys are set up through 4 different reaches in the Old Ausable Channel, from the Pinery to Lake Street. There are 6 loggers within each reach, spaced out over 100m gaps.
They’re also tracking the fish through radio tags, as well as larval sampling to help determine spawning habits, habitats, and hatching times.
Through the data that they’re gathering, Morrison and Powell are developing habitat suitability models and creating a high fidelity habitat map – this knowledge allows for plans to be developed to better protect those habitats.
Boys and Moffat are looking at the physiology of the species, and how they respond to environmental threats. They are trying to determine risk factors for decline in populations, to help mitigate those risks.
Morrison says that working to take care of these species is a way that we can preserve our local natural spaces for the next generation.
Powell says that protecting species is critical to the balance of any ecosystem, and that we have a special responsibility to the fish that can only be found here,
If you want to follow them and see some awesome pictures of fish, you can follow their Facebook page – Lambton Shores Endangered Fish Adventure.
Written by: B. Shakyaver
