High Definition Fish Survey To Support Upper Delaware River, Hancock, NY
The Upper Delaware River is a component of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System and a unit of the National Park System. The National Park Service (NPS) is responsible for protecting threatened and endangered (T&E) species in this area.
The Upper Delaware River watershed is host to a T&E species of fish known as the bridle shiner, Notropis bifrenatus. A member of the minnow family, the bridle shiner is vulnerable to poor water quality and high turbidity, particularly in agricultural areas.
The NPS requested a High Definition Fish Survey (HDFS) to sample for the presence of bridle shiners in a small, highly vegetated, and intermittent floodplain pond next to the Delaware River. The HDFS provided a rapid way to gather geo-referenced video to document the species occurring within the pond. The video results were sent to species experts and confirmed the presence of the bridle shiner in these areas. HDFS proved ideal for T&E species sampling because it is rapid, verifiable, and much less disruptive to aquatic life than other sampling methods such as electro-shocking or seine-netting.
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