Hydroacoustic study of Salmo Salar migration in the Shuya River (Onega Lake Basin)

Abstract

“Netcor” computer-aided hydroacoustic system has been used to study the pattern of spawning migration in the Shuya River of the Atlantic salmon Salmo Salar inhabiting Onega Lake. The migrants’ length frequency and abundance have been evaluated, and the pattern of their spawning run, as referring to observation days and the time of day, has been determined. The data obtained with the use of the hydroacoustic system have been compared with those from a fish-counting trap at a fish-counting barrier (FCB). Hydroacoustic systems have been shown to perform better in studies of anadromous fish migration and in the determination of migrants’ abundance and the cycling and direction of their movements.