Semi

- Annual Progress Report

Section 6 Species Recovery Grants program
Award Number: NAI0NMF4720030

Award Period : 06/01/2010

- 05/31/2013 Report period : 06 /01/201 2

– 11 /3 0 /201 2

Grant Title : “Sturgeons in the Mid

- Atlantic Region: A Multi

- State Collaboration of
Research and Conservation”

Grantee : Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control Division of Fish and Wildlife (DNREC

- DFW)

Proj ect Manager : Edna J. Stetzar, DNREC

- DFW Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program 4876 Hay Point Landing Rd, Smyrna, DE 19977 Phone Number: (302) 735

- 8654 Edna.Stetzar@state.de.us
Reported by:
Tom Savoy, Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Jeanette Bowers

- Altman, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Heather Corbett, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Matthew Oliver, University o f Delaware John Madsen, University of Delaware Dewayne Fox, Delaware State University Matthew Fisher, Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control
Compiled by:
Edna J. Stetzar, Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environme ntal Control Report submitted to https://grantsonline.rdc.noaa.gov by Shelley Dibona

“This project was funded, in full or part, by a grant obtained through the Delaware Division of Fish and Wildlife with funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration under the Species Recovery Grants Program”.December 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 2 of 27 Introduction This project was initially proposed and awarded as a 3

- year project. Due to initial delays in state approvals the distribution of funds
, and thus fulfillment of some objectives
, was behind schedule in the first year. Federal funding was reduced by 32% in the second year of the project and again reduced by 75.64% in the third year. These budget cuts necessitated the amendment of

sta te approvals, MOAs and contracts causing further delays. In order to meet the most pertinent objectives a no

- cost extension will be requested in the coming months

. Despite these challenges, the partners on this project continue to collect data that can be used by state resource managers and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) for protection and management of shortnose and Atlantic sturgeon in the region.

Progress on Project Goals and Objectives
1

- Identification of shortnose sturgeon spawning sites and characterization of early life history habitats in the non

- tidal Delaware River The objective of this job is to further define the spawning area for shortnose sturgeon in the Delaware River, with e mphasis on the area upr i ver of Scudders Falls, through tracking of acoustically tagged adults dur i ng the spawning season and sampling for eggs and larvae. Processing of the D

- frame net sa mples collected during March 27

- May 9, 2012 was

co mpleted. A total of 31 shortnose sturgeon eggs and 2 larvae were collected. Of the eggs, 30
were collected at t h e Lambertville rapids transect and one w as taken at the Fife & Drum transect. Both larvae were collected at t h e Fife & Drum t r ansect (Figure 1) . No shortnose sturgeon early life stages were collected at t h e Lambertville p ool or Lu m berville tran s ects. Collection l o catio n s for the early life stages are con s iste n t with observations of adults and detections of acoustically tagged shortnose sturgeon. This infor m ation confir m s t h at shortnose sturgeon a r e spawning at
least as f ar upriv e r a s the La m bertville rapi ds

.December 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 3 of 27 Figure 1. A shortnose sturgeon larvae (16 mm TL) collected at the Fife & Drum Transect, April 18, 2012

Summary of Expenditures (Note: the figures below include all expenditures made by NJ DEP for Objective 1, 2, and 11 combined during the reporting period)

• Salary $6,373.65

• Contract (Research Vessel) $66,000.00

• Equipment $28.89
TOTAL : $72,401.94

2

- Distribution and habitat use of early stage ju venile Atlantic sturgeon in Delaware
waters
G illnetting commenced on October 22 , 201 2 and continued until November 20, 2011 with 8 days of sampling effort . Gillnetting effort occurred at 2 sites; Carney’s Point and Marcus Hook anchorage

. Due to budget constraints gillnetting effort was reduced and the time period and locations selected were based on success in past years. The Marcus Hook anchorage site was the only site that produced early stage juvenile Atlantic sturgeon during the sampl ingDecember 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 4 of 27 survey

. One young of the year Atlantic sturgeon was captured but did not meet the 2% of body weight restriction for the available transmitters. Two additional juvenile Atlantic sturgeon and one juvenile shortnose sturgeon were also captured during th e season. Of the 4 individual sturgeon captured, 3 were implanted with transmitters (Table 1). The juvenile shortnose sturgeon was implanted with a transmitter to aid in efforts to accomplish objective 3 and will be included in the analysis for that obje ctive.

Table 1. Juvenile Atlantic sturgeon captured in 2012 by the Delaware Division of Fish and Wildlife and implanted with transmitters.

Release

Date * Species Capture Location Total Length

(mm) Fork length (mm) PIT TAG No. Tissue Tag Life (days) Transmitter ID No.

11

- 19

- 2012 SNS Marcus Hook Anchorage 480 405 985121014382241 yes 933 29699

11

- 20

- 2012 ATS Marcus Hook Anchorage 262 228 985121018602377 yes 933

11

- 20

- 2012 ATS Marcus Hook Anchorage 549 478 985121014382173 yes 933 29700

11

- 20

- 2012 ATS Marcus Hook Anchorage 569 487 985121014381957 yes 933 29701 *SNS=Shortnose sturgeon; ATS=Atlantic sturgeon

Due to the elimination of our manual tracking objective in this segment, short delay transmitters were not necessary so only longer delay transmitters with extended life (933 days) were utilized. Sturgeon recaptures from this segment will be reported in the final report. Manual Tracking The manual tracking objective was eliminated in this segment due to budget cuts. Passive Tracking
In a show of cooperative effort D elaware State University (D SU ) maintained receivers will not be removed this winter in the upper tidal Delaware River to allow for better fine scale seasonal movement analysis of overwintering early stage juveniles. Ice flow wi ll be monitored carefully over the winter and receivers will be retrieved if they are in danger and redeployed
when the ice flows subside. Seasonal movement analysis will be included in the final report.December 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 5 of 27 Chesapeake and Delaware Canal analysis examining m ovement between the 2 systems for shortnose and Atlantic sturgeon from 2012 will also be included in the final report.

Expenditures

• Salary/fringe: $ 16,031.41

• Supplies: $ 3,159.46

• *Contractual: $ 1,391.51
T OTAL : $ 20,582.38 ( * Contractual expenditures include expenditures made by DNREC

- DFW for this objective during this reporting period. Because DNREC

- DFW is the lead agency on this project, total overall contractual expenditures can also include funds paid out to project part ners in the State of Connecticut, State of New Jersey and University of Delaware . Due to another reduction in federal funds and subsequent need to amend MOAs and contracts which include s a lengthy approval process, no funds were paid out to partners this r eporting period ).

3

- Distribution and habitat use of juvenile Atlantic sturgeon in New Jersey waters
The State of New Jersey expanded t h e exi s ting tele m etry receiver network by purchasing and deploying new VEMCO VR2 r eceivers in NJ w a ters of the Delaware Bay. Data from the
receivers was downloaded m onthly from March through Nove m ber and will co n tin u e in 2013. Funding was not appropriated through the New Jersey budgetary system in ti m e to perform the project require m ents as schedu l ed so we are currently w orking in Year One of the project. All equip m ent neces s ary to asse m ble and deploy the receivers was not purchased until January 2012.
A total of 18 receivers w ere deployed by May 7, 2012. Data from the receivers were downloaded on the following dates: M ay 16, J u ly 19, August 30, Septe m ber 27, and October 24, 2012. Fifteen receivers were pulled from the w a ter on November 15. Several atte m p ts were

m ade to find three receivers t h at are still m i ssing. All coordinat es and downloaded data were

sent to Lori Brown for the ACT Ne t w ork database. W e plan to deploy the receivers in March 2013 for Year Two of the project require m ents. Maintenance and downloading of all Delaware
R i ver VR2W receivers deployed by E RC Inc. in spring 2012 continued during the reporting period.December 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 6 of 27 Collection and acoustic tagging of juvenile sturgeon was perfor m ed during late May

- m i d June and late Septe m ber

- late November 2012. The focus of this work was tagging early juvenile (pre

- m igratory) Atlantic stu r geon and juvenile shortnos e s t urgeon. Sa m p ling periods were subject to t h e water temperat u re co n ditions appea r ing on the Federal s ci e nti f ic c o ll e ction per m its
issued to E R C, Inc. Fourteen juvenile Atlantic sturgeon, of which five were acoustically tagged, were taken during the spring. In the fall, eight juvenile Atlantic sturgeon, of which three were acoustically tagged, and one sho r tnose sturgeon, also acoustically tagged, were collected. At
least one of the Atlantic sturgeon tagged in the fall (334 mm FL, 387 mm TL) is though t to be of the 2012 year class, confir m i ng at least so m e spawning success in 2012.
Not all of t h e planned ac oustic tags were deplo y ed in the f all. Gill n e tti n g catch p e r eff ort in the Marcus Hook anchorage aggregation area, a typically productive sampli ng location, was considerably less than usual. It is believed that noise and physical disturbance from maintenance dredging in the navigati o n channel a d jace n t to t h e Marcus H o ok anchora g e caused the sturgeon to disperse from the area. A rapid decline in water te m perature after Hurricane Sandy m ay also have been a factor in this app a rent dispersal. Sa m pling in o t her areas based on detections of previously tagged Atlantic sturgeon was not successful.

4

- Hydroacoustic assessment of Atlantic and shortnose stur geon habitat requirements in the Delaware River Estuary During the first month of the reporting period, the Edgetech 4125

- P (600

- 1600 kHz) side

scan sonar system was deployed in the Delaware River between Tinicum Island (in the vicinity of the Philadelphi a International Airport) and Marcus Hook, PA. The system was able to characterize bottom sedimentary environments and imaged several Atlantic sturgeons. Later in the month, the system was deployed in the Hudson River north of Poughkeepsie, NY in conjunct ion with a tagging and sampling survey that was being conducted by the Fisheries Bureau of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Side

- scan sonar data were collected in areas including where the Fisheries Bureau had deployed nets to sample for sturgeon. This region also had numerous telemetered adult Atlantic sturgeon tagged off the coast of Delaware as part of the interbasin exchange component of this project. As shown in the example figure below, excellent images of Atlantic sturg eon were obtained (Figure 2 ).December 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 7 of 27 Figure 2. Side

- scan sonar image of Atlantic sturgeon. Hudson River survey June 21, 2012.
Images of sturgeon obtained during the Hudson River survey were used as examples in a poster presentation entitled “Hydroacoustic Assessment of Habitat Utilization for Sturgeon in the Delaware River” that was presented by Delaware State University graduate student, Amy Comer,
at the Mid

- Atlantic American Fisheries Society meeting held on November 1 st and 2 nd , 2012.
Ms. Comer was hired on this project grant starting in early August. As planned in November during the period of this report and carried out in early December just after the closing period, a side

- scan sonar survey was conducted within the upper Delaware River near Trenton NJ. The survey was primarily conducted along the ce nter of the river within the main shipping channel. For optimal data collection, the side

- scan was collected using the high frequency mode (1600 kHz). The tow speed was approximately 3.5 knots (6.482 km/h). With the towfish at roughly 5 m off the river bed, the swath width of usable side

- scan data was on the order of 60 m. Simultaneously while collecting side

- scan images, telemetry data and physical water
characteristic data were recorded. A VEMCO VR

- 100 ultrasonic receiver equipped with an
omni

- dir ectional hydrophone was deployed and secured roughly 1 m below the water’s surface. The hydrophone was utilized as a tool to detect telemetered sturgeon. When detected, an individual tag code, GPS location, time, and the signal strength were recorded. I n addition, aDecember 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 8 of 27 handheld YSI model 85 was deployed and secured roughly 1 m below the water’s surface and conductivity, salinity, temperature, and dissolved oxygen readings were recorded three times during the approximately four hour survey. During the surv ey, side

- scan sonar targets indicative of near

- bottom dwelling fish were recorded (Figures 3 and 4 ). In particular off the PSEG Duck Island Power Plant near Trenton, NJ, we preliminarily interpret an aggregation, or cluster, of targets to be primarily sho rtnose sturgeons (Figure 4). We cautiously identify this aggregation as such due to the following factors: 1) telemetry data indicated one tagged shortnose sturgeon (tag ID 55380) was within the aggregation, 2) the side

- scan target characteristics (e.g., length, shape, and shadow) were consistent with shortnose sturgeons, and 3) shortnose sturgeons are known to form dense aggregations seasonally, and while overwintering (Secor and Woodland 2005). These preliminary results suggest the importance of this are a in terms of sturgeon habitat within the Delaware River. Further analysis and interpretation of the data that we have collected will be carried out during the next period of the project. At this stage, our reported results are preliminary.

Figure 3. Examples of fish targets imaged during Delaware River

– Trenton survey. Based upon analysis of telemetry data, target characteristics (i.e., length, shape, associated shadow), and fish characteristics (i.e., orientation relative to current, presence near bottom, size, and shape) these targets are inferred to be potential shortnose sturgeon. This interpretation is preliminary.December 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 9 of 27 Figure 4. Side

- scan sonar image of aggregation of side

- scan sonar targets off the PSEG Duck Island Power Plant along the Delaware River near Trenton, NJ. Our preliminary interpretation is that the targets are associated with shortnose sturgeon.
Reference
Secor, D. H., & Woodland, R. J. (2005). Recovery and status of shortnose sturgeon in the Hudson River. (Doctoral dissertation). University of Delaware Budget Expenditures

Summary of Expenditures

• Salary/fringe: $2,498.25

5

- Spawning habitats and interbasin exchange rates of Atlantic sturgeon in the New York Bight DPS Telemetry Array The passive listening array deployed in the previous reporting period in the Delaware River (10), Delaware Bay (36), and off the coast of MD, DE and NJ (45) was maintained (Figure
5 ). Additionally, a gate consisting of 9 receivers was deployed on independe nt moorings from 1

- 16km from shore in the Atlantic Ocean near Chincoteague, VA on September 28 (Figure 5 ). TheDecember 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 10 of 27 series of 13 receivers in the Hudson River and the New York Harbor to monitor for the presence of telemetered Atlantic sturgeon was expanded to 23 and supplements an additional 19 receivers maintained by NYDEC and SUNY (Figure 5 ). Prior to Hurricane Sandy 16 receivers on independent moorings along the Delaware Coast were removed to prevent damage. The entirety of the remaining array was left out during the super storm and as a result two of the 74 receivers were lost during this event.

Delaware River Spawning Site Identification During the likely period of spawning in 2012 six adult Atlantic sturgeon from directed sampling efforts were detected in the Delaware River, two of these six were individuals that had entered the Delaware River in 2009, 2010, and 2011 (DSU1052433 and DSU1052442), the other 4 were tagged in 2012 (DSU1122465, DSU1122466, DSU1122488, and DSU1122493). River of Origi n (ROO) has been determined for all individuals captured during the 2009 and 2010 sampling seasons, while the ROO for Atlantic sturgeon captured in 2011 and 2012 has yet to be determined. Adult Atlantic sturgeon entered the Delaware River at a mean temper ature of
16.3 ° C and departed at a mean temperature of 23.1 ° C. Atlantic sturgeon # DSU1052433 (male, ROO Delaware) entered the river on April 22 at a corresponding water temperature of 15.9 o C and departed on May 23 (20.6 o C), Atlantic sturgeon # DSU10524 42 (male, ROO Delaware) entered the river on April 17 (14.7 o C) and departed on June 6 (22.4 o C); both individuals were
detected in similar areas as in 2009

- 2011 moving upstream to Chester, PA, river kilometer (rkm) 129, and Tinicum Island (rkm 135) respec tively. Atlantic sturgeon # DSU1122465 (male), entered the river on May 6 (16.3 o C) and departed on May 25 (21.9 o C) reaching Wilmington, DE (rkm 120). Atlantic sturgeon # DSU1122466 (male), entered the Delaware River on May 13 (17.6 o C) and departed on June 22 (25.9 o C) reaching a maximum upstream extent of rkm 176 (Bristol, PA). Atlantic sturgeon # DSU1122493 (male), entered the Delaware River on May 6 (16.3 o C) and departed on June 1 (24.2 o C) reaching Tinicum Island, PA (rkm 135). One female (DSU112 2488) was detected in the Delaware River in 2012 and occupied areas of the river with suitable habitat (i.e. flowing freshwater and hard bottom substrate (Sommerfield and Madson 2003, and Simpson 2008). When captured on April 9, 2012 this female was 208cm FL and weighed 98 kg and had large black eggs visually estimated to be stage 5 (migratory nucleus; Van Eenennaam and Dorshov 1998) that would be ready to spawn in the spring of 2012. AtlanticDecember 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 11 of 27 sturgeon # DSU1122488 entered the river on May 9 (17.2 o C) and remained in the river for 9 days before leaving on May 29 (23.8 o C) traveling as far upstream as Chester, PA (rkm 130). The movements of all six adult Atlantic sturgeon were monitored via passive telemetry in an attempt to ascertain if they were moving in to areas similar to that of known spawning habitat in other rivers or areas previously identified as potential spawning areas, i.e. high freshwater flows and hard bottom (Sommerfield and Mads e n 2003, and Simpson 2008). The six adult Atlantic sturgeon spen t the majority of the time between RKM 110 and 135 with one male venturing as far up as RKM 176 for several weeks before exiting the river (Figure 6 ). The movements of these Atlantic sturgeon in relation to the location of the salt front during their
rive rine residency shows they occupied areas from the location of the salt front to 20km upstream of the salt front while in the Delaware River (Figure 7 ). A single adult male Atlantic sturgeon (50kg and 185cm FL) telemetered on May 1, 2011 that was determine d to have gonads stage 6 (post spermiation: Van Eenennaam and Dorshov 1998) entered the Delaware River on July 23, 2012 (27.7 ° C). This male remained in the river until September 19 when water temperatures fell below 23.5 ° C and may be indicative of a fal l spawn similar to what has been recently documented in the Roanoke (Flowers and Hightower in prep ) and James Rivers (Balazik et al. 2012). The male Atlantic sturgeon advanced quickly above Philadelphia (rkm 153) where it remained between there and Burlin gton, NJ (rkm 187) until departure.

Interbasin Exchange As a result of our continued gillnetting and tagging efforts 46 Atlantic sturgeon were detected in the Hudson River in 2012 beginning as early as April 12 and departing as late as
October 3. To date, no telemetered Atlantic sturgeon has entered both the Hudson River and the Delaware River, be it in the same year or across years.

Literature Cited:
Balazik, M., T., G.C. Garman, J.P. Van Eenennaam, J. Mohler, and L.C. Woods. 2012. Empirical evidence of fall spawning by Atlantic sturgeon in the James River, Virginia. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 141:1465

- 1471.
Simpson, P.C. 2008. Movements and habitat use of Delaware River Atlantic Sturgeon. Masters T hesis. Delaware State University, Dover, Delaware. 137pp.December 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 12 of 27 Sommerfield, C.K. and J.A. Madsen. 2003. Sedimentological and geophysical survey of the upper Delaware Estuary. Final Report to the Delaware River Basin Commission. 126p.

Van Eenennaam, J. P., and S. I. Doroshov. 1998. Effects of age and body size on gonadal development of Atlantic sturgeon. Journal of Fish Biology 53:624

- 637.

Figure 5

. Passive receiver locations for the Hudson River, Delaware River, Delaware Bay, Coastal Atlantic Ocean of DE, MD, NJ, and VA in 2012.December 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 13 of 27 Figure 6 . Daily mode location of individual adult Atlantic sturgeon by River Kilometer during the likely period of spawning in 2012.December 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 14 of 27 Figure 7 . Daily mode location of adult Atlantic sturgeon in comparison to the salt front during the likely period of spawning in 2012.

S ummary of Expenditures for DSU:

• Salaries/fringe $35,102.03

• Travel $5,055.91

• Contractual $185.32

• Indirect Costs $53,178.00

• Supplies $3,158.53

• Scholarships $2,500.00 TOTAL: $99,179.79

6

- Examination of shortnose and Atlantic sturgeon movements, habitat utilization and
interaction in Connecticut waters. Objectives: To determine abundance and specific habitat utilization of shortnose and Atlantic sturgeon in Connecticut waters and correlate movements within and in/out of key areas in Connecticut with environmental variables (temperature, river flow, and dissolved oxygen).December 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 15 of 27 Signif icant progress towards meeting the objectives was attained with well more than the stated goal of fifty sturgeon (25 Atlantic, 25 shortnose) per year to be collected. A total of 174 Atlantic sturgeon and 30 shortnose sturgeon were collected during this pr oject segment. All fish collection efforts in Connecticut waters took place in areas not subject to the Harbor Porpoise Take Reduction Plan (HPTRP). Collection efforts were focused on gill netting during this segment until November when gill nets became less effective with the cooler water temperatures. Effort included 179 gill net sets on 51 days of netting (average 4 nets per day) and 25 trawls made on 4 days (average 6 trawls per day). All sturgeon collected were examined, and processed. Processin g included collection of meristic measurements, examination for previous tags including external (t

- bar, Carlin and telemetry transmitters) and internal tags (both PIT tags and telemetry transmitters) and physical condition/damage. All untagged sturgeon t hat had not been previously marked received a Pit tag implanted near the dorsal fin. Atlantic sturgeon also
received an external USFWS t

- bar tag inserted into the left side just anterior to the base of the
dorsal fin. A subset of both shortnose and Atlan tic sturgeon were selected for surgical implantation of an ultrasonic transmitter from all sturgeon captured based on overall
health/condition. Shortnose sturgeon collected ranged from 47.5 cm FL to 110.5 cm FL (54.0

– 123.0 cm TL) and 0.6 to 14.2 kg in weight. Seven of the 30 collected were recaptures of previously tagged fish. Time at liberty between collections of these fish ranged from 1,813 to 7,207 days. All recaptures exceeded five years, with one fish having been captured three times over 14 y ears and one fish at large for twenty years. This last fish is notable as it was already an adult when tagged in 1992 at 87.5 cm FL. Early Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, Bureau of Natural Resources (CT DEEP) shortnose stur geon mark recapture efforts utilized Carlin dangler tags, although the tags were hard wired with stainless steel wires to the left base of the dorsal fin rather than trailing on the end of a twisted wire as per the usual technique.
When this fish was reca ptured in 2012 the tag was found to be still attached and in good condition, documenting the efficacy of attaching external tags in this manner and the long life span of these animals. Over 600 recaptures of previously tagged shortnose sturgeon in the
Con necticut River by CT DEEP support longevity of these sturgeon. Intervals of years between
collections is common with the current record maximum 7,916 days (almost 22 years) betweenDecember 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 16 of 27 initial collection/tagging and recapture. Moreover, many shortnose sturg eon have been captured/handled more than once by CT DEEP, up to as many as seven captures of one fish. Lengths of Atlantic sturgeon captured ranged from 61.5 cm FL to 139.0 cm FL (70.0

– 154.0 cm TL) and 1.3 to 17.3 kg in weight during this segment. Twen ty three of the 174 Atlantic sturgeon collected were recaptures of previously tagged fish. Thirteen of these recaptures were of fish originally tagged in Connecticut waters, 8 were tagged in NY waters, 1 in Virginia and 1 in Delaware. Most (10 of 13) of the Atlantic sturgeon recaptures with CT DEEP applied tags were at large for short durations, having been initially tagged in 2012. These short term recaptures were still invaluable, demonstrating short term movement or residence, and animal
health after having been previously handled. Two of these were recaptures of fish with surgical implantation of ultrasonic transmitters

– documenting healing of the incision. The remaining
three of the 13 CT DEEP recaptures document the return of fish from 2011 (2 st urgeon) and 2010 (1 sturgeon). Most shortnose sturgeon were collected in the typical habitats/areas that have been shown to be productive from previous research efforts (CT DEEP unpublished). In contrast, the highest number of Atlantic sturgeon ever co llected from within the Connecticut River by CT DEEP staff
were seen in 2012 in a n area that had not previously produced any Atlantic sturgeon. Sixty six Atlantic sturgeon were collected from a relatively small area of 2 kilometers within the estuarine

po rtion of the Connecticut River over a 8 week period from late August to October. It remains unclear if the concentration of Atlantic sturgeon in the estuarine portion of the river was unusual in numbers, location or timing, as this precise area was never previously fished to the extent it
was in 2012. Other locations within the lower river fished in 2012 that were identified over the previous 8 years did account for a few Atlantic sturgeon but provided no indications that large numbers of Atlantic sturgeo n were present in the river in 2012. Shortnose sturgeon were present with Atlantic sturgeon in the lower River from May through July, a typical pattern seen in the Connecticut River where shortnose sturgeon move downriver during the springtime freshet whe n the salt wedge is displaced from the river. These fish remain until the flows drop and the salt wedge returns into the lower river and they slowly begin to move to other upriver areas. Shortnose sturgeon collections and detections of ultrasonic transmi tters documented the return of shortnose sturgeon to the estuary region in September and October, during which time Atlantic sturgeon were still present. Typical of previous research efforts in the Connecticut River, bothDecember 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 17 of 27 Atlantic and shortnose sturgeon we re collected in a single netting effort and often from a single gillnet documenting concurrent use of some habitats. A total of 31 ultrasonic transmitters were surgically implanted into Atlantic sturgeon during this project segment. Unusual, low river flow conditions in the Spring of 2012 allowed the early implantation of 25 ultrasonic transmitters into shortnose sturgeon and two into Atlantic sturgeon as reported in the previous Segment Report. Most (51%) Atlantic sturgeon captured within this project segment were collected within the Connecticut River, hence most of the surgical implants of acoustic transmitters were performed on sturgeon collected in the river. The acoustic telemetry array of Vemco VR2W receivers (Figures 8 , 9 ) was fully deployed in Connecticut waters during this project segment. Over 2.5 million detections of ultrasonic
transmitters were recorded in the CT DEEP array in 2012. Preliminary analyses indicate that this represents at least 54 Atlantic sturgeon implanted with ultrasonic transmitters by CT DEEP staff, at least 10 by other Section Six partners and over 30 by other Atlantic sturgeon researchers. A total of 47 shortnose sturgeon with ultrasonic transmitter implanted in previous Section 6 segments were tracked in 2012 averag ing over 30,000 detection per fish. All but two of the transmitters implanted into Atlantic sturgeon in 2012 by CT DEEP staff produced at least 500 detections per individual, averaging over 10,000 detections per transmitter. Additionally, 10 of
17 Atlant ic sturgeon implanted with ultrasonic transmitters in 2011 and 13 of 20 implanted in 2010 returned to Connecticut and areas monitored by the array. Two of the N ational Marine Fisheries Service (N MFS ) “SCUTES” transmitters implanted into Atlantic sturgeon in 2009 were also recorded in Connecticut waters during 2012, including one sturgeon implanted and released in the Gulf of Maine. This fish has spent considerable time in Connecticut waters each of the last three summers (2010, 2011 and 2012), providing o ver 15,000 detections per year. Atlantic sturgeon returning to Connecticut waters in the year(s) after tagging are especially gratifying in a few cases where less than 500 detections were collected in the tagging year. Few detections upon transmitter act ivation/implantation raise questions of fish mortality, transmitter failure, lack of receivers in the appropriate area
, and/or rapid emigration from the area after surgical intervention. Return of Atlantic sturgeon to Connecticut waters over multiple year s also highlights the importance of these habitats as detections of CT DEEP implanted transmitters have been reported from many other States/jurisdictions (NY, DE, NC and FL) as these fish make their seasonal migrations along the entire East Coast of the U nited States.December 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 18 of 27 Figure 8. Location of passive acoustic receivers in the Connecticut River.December 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 19 of 27 Figure 9. Location of passive acoustic receivers in Long Island Sound and the estuarine portion of the Connecticut River.

Summary of Expenditures ( Note: sampling efforts cover both objectives 6 and 7 concurrently, thus there is only one budget that covers both objectives. For this report, the budget was split 50/50 between the two objectives to clarify for reviewers ).

• Salary/fringe: $16,177.50

• Supplie s: $167.50

TOTAL: $16,345.00

7

- Movements and habitat use of near

- shore environments in Connecticut waters by Atlantic sturgeonDecember 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 20 of 27 Objectives : To document the fine scale habitat us of Atlantic sturgeon in the near

- shore marine environments of Long Island Sound. Information collected could be useful in determination of critical habitats and may be helpful in the long term management of Atlantic sturgeon on a coastwide basis.

As described in job 6 (above), 174 Atlantic sturgeon were captured during this segment, with the largest percentage of these (56%) coming from the Connecticut River. All fish collection efforts in Connecticut waters took p lace in areas not subject to the Harbor Porpoise Take Reduction Plan (HPTRP). Most of the remaining 76 fish collected were captured off the mouth of the Connecticut River and only 3 Atlantic sturgeon were captured from the centrally located Long Island S ound ‘concentration area’. Numbers of Atlantic sturgeon captured from usual areas of Long Island Sound were low, averaging less than 0.3 fish per net until October. On October 2, manual tracking of acoustic transmitters indicated the presence of at leas t 7 acoustically tagged Atlantic sturgeon in a small area off the mouth of the Connecticut River, less than a kilometer from usual gill net locations. Four gillnets were set resulting in the collection of 60 Atlantic sturgeon. Unfortunately, nine fish we re found to be mortalities upon retrieval of the gear. Soak times were not excessive and a second boat and crew were dispatched as soon as the holding tank and pen were full to reduce handling time and help revive fish, but those fish removed from the gil l nets in a moribund condition never displayed any signs of life despite prolonged attempts at resuscitation.
Acoustic receivers deployed in Long Island Sound sustained very high losses in 2012 (15 lost of 35 deployed) including several of those utilize d to monitor immigration and emigration from Long Island Sound waters. Available data indicates that tagged Atlantic sturgeon behaved similarly to those detected in previous years although there were differences observed. Analyses
of acoustic data confir med the lack of fish in typically gill netted areas and suggests that Atlantic sturgeon shifted their distribution slightly within the two ‘concentration areas’ in Long Island Sound, in both cases moving shallower and towards the Connecticut shore. Limite d understanding of sturgeon behavior and benthic habitats/food resources in Connecticut waters prevents firm conclusions from being made but these small shifts in distribution (on the order of 2 to 10 kilometers) were likely a result of prey availability as other abiotic conditions (water temperature, dissolved oxygen) did not likely change on these spatial scales. Generally, AtlanticDecember 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 21 of 27 sturgeon returning over multiple years, revisit the same locations. Fish collected within the
Connecticut River often ret urn to the river, despite the challenges they must face as they transition from the marine into a riverine environment. Fish do move among known concentration areas and episodic detection of some fish indicates that there are still other
unknown moderate use areas in Long Island Sound. One interesting pattern observed is that Atlantic sturgeon move westerly to the mid

- Sound deep water concentration area before emigrating from Long Island Sound. Pathway of emigration remains unknown but monitoring of
the far western end of Long Island sound by other researchers suggests that the East River is not the major corridor of emigration. Previous speculation of sturgeon exiting through the deep water along the North shore of Long Island, New York remains but rem ains plausible. Placement of acoustic receivers in this area would be challenging but invaluable in helping to further understand timing and location of migratory corridors.

Summary of Expenditures ( Note: sampling efforts cover both objectives 6 and 7 c oncurrently, thus there is only one budget that covers both objectives. For this report, the budget was split 50/50 between the two objectives to clarify for reviewers ).

• Salary/fringe: $16,177.50

• Supplies: $167.50

TOTAL: $16,345.00

8

- Development of remote sensed spatial models for sturgeons in the mid

- Atlantic region The overall goal of this portion of the project is to develop spatial models for Atlantic sturgeon in the Mid

- Atlantic. The modeling portion of this study is behind sched ule. The University of Delaware was originally awarded a post

- doc to develop a spatial model for sturgeon in the study region. The reduction in federal funds replaced the post

- doc with a student. While students are capable of this task in the long run, there is a much larger challenge in training and teaching a student the techniques for proper data handling and modeling on a project
like this. Because of the cut in funds, and the extra time investment needed to bring a student up to speed, there have been si gnificant delays in producing a quality spatial model of sturgeon
distribution for the Mid

- Atlantic region. Notwithstanding the challenges associated with fundingDecember 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 22 of 27 cuts, the student has been trained to properly handle acoustic receiver data and to merge this data with satellite observations. An initial maximum likelihood model for predicting the intersection between sea surface temperature and Atlantic s turgeon locations is incomplete, but promising (Figure 1 0 ). The spatial application of this model is coherent with observations of Atlantic sturgeon. Application of this model during mean June temperature conditions is promising, but not yet appropriately constrained (Figure 11 ). T he inclusion of ocean color data is expected to significantly improve the model. Post processing of ocean color data has been completed and these predictors will be included to improve the spatial and temporal accuracy of future m odels.

Figure 10. Observed acoustic detections of Atlantic sturgeon in the Mid

- Atlantic (black contours) show a seasonal relationship to s ea surface temperatures. Contours represent lines that contain 50 or 95% of acoustic observations. A s imple maximum likelihood model was constructed based on temperature alone that could reproduce the observed distribution of Atlantic sturgeon (blue contours).December 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 23 of 27 Figure 11. S patial application of the test model for average June temperature conditions. Probability of Atlantic sturgeon location (color palette) is generally congruous with observations of Atlantic sturgeon in June (circles). The test model performs well in Delaware Bay, but is lacking appropriate constraints in the coastal ocean.

Summar y of Expenditures

• $45,567.09 in Salary, Travel, computing supplies and indirect costs

• A balance of $6843.91 will be used in additional supplies for the project.

9

- Atlantic Cooperative Telemetry Network: Lori Brown is still maintaining the existing GoogleDoc ( https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Aj6Cuknn68JXdG5aWVJDbmFmMHNkNGJV QkdKQVpnSkE#gid=0 ) with tags codes from researchers along the Atlantic coast. There are over 3140 active transmitters ( ‘ active ’ transmitters are those considered to be working as of 1/1/2011 based on estimated transmitter life) in the current database. Sturgeons make up approximately 44% of telemetered a nimals with active transmitters. There are over 7300 total transmitters including those with unknown expiration dates and those that are expired. Overall, sturgeons represent approximately 28% of the total database (Table 2 ).December 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 24 of 27 Table 2. Breakdown of the number of transmitters identified a s sturgeon in the A tlantic Cooperative Telemetry Network database. * Indicates fish that were identified as sturgeon but actual species was not given.
Species Active Transmitters Transmitters with Unknown

Expirations Expired Transmitters Total Transmitters

Atlantic sturgeon 1217 71 210 1498

Shortnose sturgeon 123 115 74 312
Sturgeon* 51 136 32 219 All species 3143 1761 2398 7302

The ACT Network transmitter list has facilitated communication between researchers and provided more detailed information about movement patterns and timing. Coastal gates, like those off the coast of Delaware and Virginia, have been providing extensive information for a variety of species migrating along the coast.
Contact has been made with a number of researchers that are starting to develop telemetry programs. In an effort to enhance and continue to develop ACT as well as spread the word and increase researcher involvement, work has been initiated with a number of agencies and programs to further develop collaborations.

• IOOS Animal Telemetry Network

o Involved in improving access to Animal Acoustic Telemetry Observations Data Project

o Provide information for workshops and meeting to further the importance of data
shar ing and collaborative efforts between researchers

• Chesapeake/James River Project

- Mid

- Atlantic Acoustic Telemetry Observation System

o This project is in the development and deployment stages in the Chesapeake Bay and James River. They are deploying both s tandard and new cabled (real

- time) acoustic receivers and are looking for insights into contacting researchers whose transmitters are detected in the array.

• Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission

– Interstate Tagging Committee

o Part of the mission of the Interstate Tagging Committee is to provide education and information about various tagging techniques and tagging projects going onDecember 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 25 of 27 in the region. They are planning on adding more detailed information about acoustic tagging and information about data sharing and the ACT Network (with a
link to the website).

To further enhance the ACT Network and provide more information about the role of ACT, content has been added to the website ( www.theactnetwork.com ). After discussing the website with Dewayne Fox, Tom Savoy, and John Manderson, it was decided to further develop the user registration to : 1 ) Gather some more details from researchers (including if they are deploying tags, maintaining receiver arrays, etc. ) and 2 ) T o establish more guidelines for researchers regarding the use of data. The website search tools are still in the development stages. The tag code summary search is working, but with limited data. A new search tool has been developed to search for researcher contact information based on tag codes, but will not be made operational on the website until it has been tested and debugged.
Work with researchers on the Delaware system continues to make sure all data is standardized and available in a timely manner. Efforts have been made between all researchers (Environmental Research Consultants, Delaware Fish and Wildlife, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, and Delaware State U niversity) to download all receivers before the end of 2012 in order to process receiver data. All downloaded data was checked for accurate station information and coordinates. All edited files were shared with collaborators via Dropbox
so data can be do wnloaded and utilized as needed. D atabase metadata and templates are maintained and updates are post ed to the Dropbox for use. There are still a number of deployed receivers that do not have the correct Station and coordinate information, making post processing time consuming. In an attempt to keep track of these issues in Delaware Bay/River, a Google
Do cument was developed with all station names, receiver locations, who owns/maintains it, any particular issues (“no station name associated with receiver”), and last known download date. This document can be edited by all collaborators. On September 2 0 th , Lori met with Heather Corbett (NJDEP) to go over correct methods of downloading, initializing, and processing telemetry data using VEMCO software. Heather had issues with using the VEMCO software and wanted to understand how to search for
transmitter codes and initialize receivers correctly in order to reduce post processing efforts in
the future.December 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 26 of 27 Presentations Lori M. Brown , Thomas F. Savoy , John Manderson , and Dewayne A. Fox. Using Networks to Enhance Telemetry Research in the Eastern United States: The Atlantic Cooperative Telemetry Network. 142 nd Annual Meeting of the American Fisheries Society, Minneapolis

– St. Paul, MN. August 22, 2012
Lori Brown. The Atlantic Cooperative Telemetry (ACT) Network: Facilitating data sharing between researchers. Presented to the ASMFC

– Interstate Tagging Committee

10

- Education/Outreach: The development of the education and outreach component of this project has been limited by federal funding budget cuts. Focus has been primarily on the other as pects of this project with the budget shifted to fulfill those objectives.

11

- Data Processing / Regulatory Information:
The State of NJ will in c orporate oc c urren c e i nf or m ation f or shortnose a n d Atlantic sturgeon into the Endangered and Nong a m e Species Progra m ’s Biotics database and Landscape Project. Infor m ation on shortnose and Atlantic sturgeon critical areas in the Delaware River, including spawning and nursery areas, will be available to such agencies as NJDEP’s Land Use Regulation Program (LUR). Data is now being entered from field activities i n to the Biotics datab a se. Data currently being processed include early life stage infor m ation collected during spring 20 1 2, as
well as receiver hits for both Atlantic and shor t nose sturgeon in the Delaware River and bay.
This in f or m ation will be inco r porated into the next v er s ion of the Landscape P r oject, which is
sched u l e d to be released in May 2013. In addition, the Species Occurrence Area (SOA) model for Atlantic sturgeon was revised
based on the existi ng shortnose sturgeon m odel. The model will be used in t h e next version of the Landscape P roject. SOA’s for each feature label were devel o ped; di s t ances associated with
each f eature label will be re fi ned as proj e ct res u lts are a c qui r ed. Feature lab e ls to d a te a re as f

ollows: 1) spawning area

– egg sighting

- 2) spawning area

– adult sighting 3) n u r s ery area

– larva sighting 4) nursery area

– young

- of

- year sighting 5) m i gration corridor

– juvenile sighting 6) m i gration corridor

– adult sight i ng 7) summering area

– juvenile sighting 8) sum m ering area

–December 2012 Progress Report

- NAI0NMF4720030 Pa ge 27 of 27 adult sighting

. The spatially explicit telemetry data that DNREC

- DFW has been collecting on shortnose and Atlantic sturgeon (via objective 2) has allowed DNREC

- DFW to begin coordinating with NJDEP to utilize the methods developed for these species to ensure a standardized approach.
Due to the latest reduction in federal funding
, staff time and effort towards this objective have been shifted to Objective 2. However, because there is a need for GIS data and maps depicting important habitat and specific areas that support estuarine/marine species, this objective can be appropriately completed under a different grant program as part of a larger mapping initiativ e. DNREC

- DFW staff will continue to coordinate with NJ

- DEP as the data is incorporated into Biotics and maps are generated but the funds from this grant award will not be used to complete this objective.