Can a bottom-moored echo sounder array provide a survey-comparable index of abundance?

Abstract

A small number of stationary echo sounders have the potential to produce abundance indices where fish repeatedly occupy localized areas (e.g., spawning grounds). To investigate this possibility, we deployed three trawl-resistant moorings with a newly designed autonomous echo sounder for ∼85 days during the walleye pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) spawning season in Shelikof Strait, Alaska. Backscatter observed from the moorings was highly correlated with ship-based acoustic surveys, suggesting that the mooring observations reflect abundance over much larger areas than the observation volume of the acoustic beam. A retrospective analysis of a 19-year time series of prespawning walleye pollock surveys was used to select mooring locations and determine that three to five moorings can produce an index of walleye pollock backscatter comparable to that produced by a ship-based survey covering ∼18 000 km2 (mean prediction error of <11% for five moorings). The three moorings deployed in Shelikof Strait yielded a backscatter estimate that was within ∼15%–20% of that observed during the survey. Thus, it appears feasible to design a relatively sparse mooring array to provide abundance information and other aspects of fish behavior in this environment.