To Catch a Fish

Black sea bass (BSB, Centropristis striata) are economically important for both recreational and commercial fisheries. During the winter, they live offshore in deep water, but in the summer, they migrate inshore to shallower water, where they are highly associated with structurally complex habitat. The National Marine Fisheries Service assesses their abundance every year using a trawl survey, but it cannot survey the rough seafloor where most BSB live. For this reason, we developed video techniques to assess BSB abundance and behavior, and to understand how fish interact with traps. This work was conducted by PhD student Dan Cullen (2015) and MS student Courtney McGeachey (2013). Our first "Trap-cam" was a standard fish trap modified by the addition of Go-Pro cameras. Later versions were stand-alone systems with more cameras.Alas, sometimes we have to catch fish with a rod and reel. Here are some photos from this research program, which was funded by the Living Marine Resources Cooperative Science Center from 2011 to 2014.