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Monitoring of fish passage at hydropower plants largely relies on stow-fyke-net captures installed downstream of turbine outlets, yet little is known about which fish behavior contributes to reduced catch efficiency. We studied fish-net interactions as well as biological and physical factors potentially influencing behavior in three experiments: (i) fall-through experiment, to measure the general physical ability of a fish to fit through a certain mesh size; (ii) net-perception experiment, where fish were filmed while being exposed to different mesh sizes, flow and lure conditions in a controlled arena setup; and (iii) stow-fyke-net experiment, where fish behavior was recorded using 20 cameras simultaneously inside a stow net during regular hydropower fish monitoring. In total, we analyzed 382 h of video recordings. The material revealed that fish interacted with the net on a high rate, independent of flow conditions, and tried to swim through the mesh regardless of whether their body fits through. Under field conditions, the fish showed three specific behavioral patterns, “sneaking,” “dwelling” and “commuting,” which led to a reduced recapture rate in the catch unit of the stow-fyke net. This study highlights the importance of considering fish behavior in future fish monitoring programs to improve the accuracy of turbine-effect assessments on fish.
Nicole Smialek; Joachim Pander; Arne Heinrich; Juergen Geist. Sneaker, Dweller and Commuter: Evaluating Fish Behavior in Net-Based Monitoring at Hydropower Plants—A Case Study on Brown Trout (Salmo trutta). Sustainability 2021, 13, 669 .
AMA StyleNicole Smialek, Joachim Pander, Arne Heinrich, Juergen Geist. Sneaker, Dweller and Commuter: Evaluating Fish Behavior in Net-Based Monitoring at Hydropower Plants—A Case Study on Brown Trout (Salmo trutta). Sustainability. 2021; 13 (2):669.
Chicago/Turabian StyleNicole Smialek; Joachim Pander; Arne Heinrich; Juergen Geist. 2021. "Sneaker, Dweller and Commuter: Evaluating Fish Behavior in Net-Based Monitoring at Hydropower Plants—A Case Study on Brown Trout (Salmo trutta)." Sustainability 13, no. 2: 669.
To promote the sustainable management of hydropower, decision makers require information about cost trade-offs between the restoration of fish passage and hydropower production. We provide a systematic overview of the construction, operational, monitoring, and power loss costs associated with upstream and downstream fish passage measures in the European context. When comparing the total costs of upstream measures across different electricity price scenarios, nature-like solutions (67–88 EUR/kW) tend to cost less than technical solutions (201–287 EUR/kW) on average. Furthermore, nature-like fish passes incur fewer power losses and provide habitat in addition to facilitating fish passage, which presents a strong argument for supporting their development. When evaluating different cost categories of fish passage measures across different electricity price scenarios, construction (45–87%) accounts for the largest share compared to operation (0–1.2%) and power losses (11–54%). However, under a high electricity price scenario, power losses exceed construction costs for technical fish passes. Finally, there tends to be limited information on operational, power loss, and monitoring costs associated with passage measures. Thus, we recommend that policy makers standardize monitoring and reporting of hydraulic, structural, and biological parameters as well as costs in a more detailed manner.
Terese E. Venus; Nicole Smialek; Joachim Pander; Atle Harby; Juergen Geist. Evaluating Cost Trade-Offs between Hydropower and Fish Passage Mitigation. Sustainability 2020, 12, 8520 .
AMA StyleTerese E. Venus, Nicole Smialek, Joachim Pander, Atle Harby, Juergen Geist. Evaluating Cost Trade-Offs between Hydropower and Fish Passage Mitigation. Sustainability. 2020; 12 (20):8520.
Chicago/Turabian StyleTerese E. Venus; Nicole Smialek; Joachim Pander; Atle Harby; Juergen Geist. 2020. "Evaluating Cost Trade-Offs between Hydropower and Fish Passage Mitigation." Sustainability 12, no. 20: 8520.
Modeling of fish population developments in the context of hydropower impacts and restoration planning requires autecological information on critical life stages (especially on juvenile stages and reproduction). We compiled and examined the current data availability in peer-reviewed and grey literature on autecological requirements of ten rheophilic fish species at risk, belonging to the salmonid, cyprinid, and cottid families. In total, 1725 data points from 223 sources were included. Economically important salmonids and the common nase were the most studied species. Grey and peer-reviewed data showed similar dispersion and variance and contributed nearly equally to the data pool of the specific species. An in-depth analysis on seven ecological parameters revealed no significant differences between both sources in terms of data availability and quality. We found substantial deficits in the data for about a quarter of the reviewed ecological parameters, in particular on individual densities in the habitats, egg development and information about juvenile stages despite the necessity of such data for more advanced population analyses. To secure fish populations in the long term, more data on basic autecological parameters is needed and grey literature might add valuable information, particularly if it relies on standardized methodologies.
Nicole Smialek; Joachim Pander; Melanie Mueller; Ruben Van Treeck; Christian Wolter; Juergen Geist. Do We Know Enough to Save European Riverine Fish?—A Systematic Review on Autecological Requirements During Critical Life Stages of 10 Rheophilic Species at Risk. Sustainability 2019, 11, 5011 .
AMA StyleNicole Smialek, Joachim Pander, Melanie Mueller, Ruben Van Treeck, Christian Wolter, Juergen Geist. Do We Know Enough to Save European Riverine Fish?—A Systematic Review on Autecological Requirements During Critical Life Stages of 10 Rheophilic Species at Risk. Sustainability. 2019; 11 (18):5011.
Chicago/Turabian StyleNicole Smialek; Joachim Pander; Melanie Mueller; Ruben Van Treeck; Christian Wolter; Juergen Geist. 2019. "Do We Know Enough to Save European Riverine Fish?—A Systematic Review on Autecological Requirements During Critical Life Stages of 10 Rheophilic Species at Risk." Sustainability 11, no. 18: 5011.