Electrofishing for American Shad – May 4, 2018

All morning I stared at the overcast skies dreading each drop of rain that fell on my windows. I’d been trying to get out in the field for a couple of weeks, but something always got in the way – shipping delays for my waders, rain, swift currents. This was the last chance I’d get for weeks. Normally, fish biologists don’t worry about a little rain when they sample fish, but we wouldn’t be using normal sampling methods. Instead of dragging large nets through the rivers we would be electrofishing, a form of sampling where an electric current is applied to the water to stun the fish and make them easy to collect. If rain is falling there is a risk that the current can find a pathway through the water and shock us. Continue reading “Electrofishing for American Shad – May 4, 2018”