We cover a wide variety of different hydroacoustics applications and are always interested in exploring something new. Our experience ranges from fish entrainment studies at hydroelectric stations, estimating fish density and distribution in reservoirs, monitoring migrating fish in rivers, to surveying the bathymetry and substrate type of streams and lakes. We are used to working in environments as diverse as hydroelectric operations in Georgia, navigational locks on the Mississippi River or remote field camps in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska.
We are particularly interested in the application and refinement of new methods such as: remote control and data access, automation, image processing techniques for improving echograms or DIDSON images, DIDSON target tracking and classification, and exploring the simultaneous use of multiple frequencies for improved target identification.
Here are some examples of recent projects we have been involved in:
Monitoring outmigrating adult eel in the intake canal of a hydroelectric project, Kennebec River, Maine
Type of sonar: DIDSON, split-beam;
Mode of deployment: fixed location side-looking aim;
Species of interest: American eel;
Special considerations: Distinguishing eels from debris;
Monitoring salmon escapement in the Copper River, Alaska
Type of sonar: split-beam;
Mode of deployment: fixed location side-looking;
Species of interest: chinook, sockeye salmon;
Special considerations: remote location; fast processing for in-season management decisions;
Monitoring fish entrainment at the Richard B. Russell Dam, Savannah River, Georgia
Type of sonar: split-beam;
Mode of deployment: fixed location down-looking, mobile side- and down-looking
Species of interest: blueback herring, threadfin shad;
Special considerations: automated data collection initiated by pump-cycle; remote control and data access;
Monitoring sockeye salmon smolt outmigration in the Kvichak River, Alaska
Type of sonar: split-beam;
Mode of deployment: fixed location side- and down-looking;
Species of interest: sockeye salmon smolt;
Special considerations: echo integration of targets with non-uniform spatial distribution;
Monitoring pink salmon escapement in the Ksi X’anmas River, British Columbia, Canada
Type of sonar: split-beam;
Mode of deployment: fixed location side-looking;
Species of interest: pink salmon;
Special considerations: echo integration of targets with non-uniform spatial distribution;
Surveying fish abundance and distribution in and near the thermal plume of Plant Branch, Lake Sinclair, Georgia
Type of sonar: split-beam;
Mode of deployment: mobile side- and down-looking;
Species of interest: threadfin shad;
Special considerations: bathymetry, spatial distribution of fish;