Hydroacoustics Monitoring Work on the Penobscot River

University of Maine researcher Dr. Gayle Zydlewski will use hydroacoustic technology to continuously record the presence and direction of travel of fish moving through the lower Penobscot River. Application of this technology is designed to provide a continuous, non-invasive estimate of migratory fish moving through the lower river. The complimentary boat electrofishing data, acoustically tagged fish moving through the lower river, DIDSON data collected at the dam, fish collected in the Veazie fish trap, and mobile DIDSON surveys will be used to identify species presence in the river and validate targets identified with hydroacoustics. Infrastructure necessary to document estuarine presence of diadromous fish approaching the lowermost dam will be established. This study will provide a mechanism for counting migratory fish in the river before and after river restoration, independent of a dam structure.