Florida Atlantic Coast Telemetry (FACT) Array: A Working Partnership Douglas Scheidt1, Erick Ault2, Robert D. Ellis3, Samuel Gruber4, Joseph Iafrate5, Chris Kalinowsky6, Steven Kessel7, Eric Reyier1, David Snyder8, Stephanie Watwood5 and Joy Young2 1Kennedy Space Center Ecological Program/InoMedic Health Applications, 2Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission/Fish & Wildlife Research Institute, 3Florida State University, 3Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Miami/Bimini Biological Field Station Foundation, 5Naval Undersea Warfare Center, 6Georgia Department of Natural Resources, 7Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research, University of Windsor, 8CSA Ocean Sciences Inc Background Project Overviews FACT Partners • Bimini Biological Field Station Foundation Purpose: Use passive acoustic telemetry to Movements and Population Exchanges of Residency and Dispersal of Three Sportfish Acoustic Telemetry in the Florida Keys - 2015 • Bureau of Ocean Energy Management document site fidelity, habitat preferences, Common Snook on the East Coast of Florida Species from a Coastal Marine Reserve Dani Morley and Alejandro Acosta Ault, Erick R.; Dutka-Gianelli, Jynessa; Whittington, James A.; Young, Joy M. Eric A. Reyier, Douglas M. Scheidt, Eric Stolen, Russell H. Lowers and Carla M. Bourtis Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission • Cape Eleuthera Institute Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Fish and Wildlife Research Institute, Kennedy Space Center Ecological Program/InoMedic Health Applications seasonal migration patterns, and reproductive Tequesta Field Lab strategies of valuable sportfish, sharks, and marine • CSA Ocean Sciences Inc turtles. • Delaware State University • East Coast Biologists The Florida Atlantic Coast Telemetry (FACT) Array is • A total of 78 red drum (Sciaenops ocellatus), black drum (Pogonias cromis) and • Florida Atlantic University a collaborative partnership of researchers that have • Sexually mature common snook (n=280) were detected at 165 receivers in river, spotted seatrout (Cynoscion nebulosus) were released within a marine reserve • There are currently70 VR2 stationsthroughout the Florida Keys and 6 in the Dry at KennedySpace Center,Florida • Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Comm estuary, nearshore, and offshore habitats along 300km of the Florida East coast Tortugas • Fish spent 67-95% of their time within reserve boundaries, depending on found that by bundling resources, they can leverage fromFeb2008 toDec 2013. • 52 individualfish consistingof 11 snapper/grouperspecieshave active tags near (St. Petersburg, Marathon and Tequesta) species, but fish commonly exited the reserve during their respective spawning • Common snook demonstrate very high site fidelity, returning to the same aggregation sites a smaller investment to track highly mobile animals seasons, suggesting the reserve helps enhance recruitment over a wider spawningand winteringsitesfor four yearsor more. • Spatialand temporal informationgained from taggedfish will demonstratethe • Florida Institute of Technology • Limited exchange at sites <2.5 km from the shore suggests low connectivity geographic area. Results clearly indicate that coastal reserves are viable options for managing levelof site fidelityand connectivitybetweenaggregationlocations beyond a study area typically restrained in scale by among inshoreand offshorepopulations. • • Florida International University mobilenon-reeffish species. funds and manpower. • Florida State University Seasonal Movements and Migrations of Large Tripletail Lobotes surinamensis Habitat Utilization and • Georgia Department of Natural Resources FACT is guided by several simple rules: Movement Study Coastal Shark Species S.C. Christopher Kalinowsky • Kennedy Space Center Ecological Program/ • Contribute and use the same type of Kessel, Steven T.; Guttridge, Tristan L.; Chapman Damien D.; Brooks, Jill; Newman, Georgia Department of Natural Resources - Coastal Resources Division J. Michael; Gruber, Samuel H. Inomedic Health Applications equipment Bimini Biological Field Station Foundation • Loxahatchee River District, Florida • When feasible locate receivers in areas that are • Mote Marine Lab - Summerland Key TRL beneficial to all researchers Georgia • Naval Undersea Warfare Center • Maintain strong scientific ethics • 56 tripletail(390-765 mm TL) taggedin Ossabaw Sound2009-2012.Fish • NOAA, Gray's Reef  • Three species of shark tagged and tracked since 2006 from the Florida coast show strong site fidelity(May-November)to estuarinewatersand are often By recognizing that tag detection data on as far afield as North Carolina. found around structure throughout the summer. • Ocean Tracking Network • Lemon sharks exhibit repeated seasonal presence in the Jupiter region during • Afterleavingthestudyarea, fish (n=33, 2009-2012)movedinto south Florida any receiver belongs to the tag owner winter months, strongly linked to water temperatures, and spread out over a waters to overwinter.Most fish returned to Georgiathe following Spring. • Riverhead Foundation  much larger geographical area. • This study has revealeda strong migratoryroutefor tripletail,between Do not use other members detection data • Results indicate that all three species need to be managed and protected on Georgiaand south Florida • Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric without permission the federal, ratherthan state,scale. Sciences, University of Miami • Acknowledge FACT in publications • Savannah State University Spatial and Temporal Dynamics Understanding Threatened and Endangered Marine of Nassau Grouper Spawning Aggregations Turtle Habitat Use patterns within Dry Tortugas • Shedd Aquarium List of species ranked by number of tags deployed since 2008. National Park in The Bahamas Kristen M. Hart1, Autumn R. Sartain2, Ikuko Fujisaki3, Harold L. Pratt Jr.4, Danielle Morley5, • South Carolina Department of Natural Resources Active Total Kristine L Stump1*, Craig P. Dahlgren2,Krista D. Sherman3, Charles R. Knapp1 Michael W. Feeley6 Common Name Scientific Name 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 Tags Deployed John G. Shedd Aquarium, Perry Institute for Marine Science, University of Exeter U.S. Geological Survey, Cherokee Nations Technological Solutions, University of Florida, Center for Shark Research Mote Marine • Southeast Coastal Ocean Observing Regional Laboratory, 5Florida Fish and Wildlife Survey, 6National Park Service Common Snook Centropomus undecimalis 165 435 Association (SECOORA) Lemon Shark Negaprion brevirostris 196 243 Green Sea Turtle Chelonia mydas 78 137 • Stony Brook University Atlantic Croaker Micropogonias undulatus 132 132 Bull Shark Carcharhinus leucas 101 128 • University of Georgia Red Drum Sciaenops ocellatus 111 124 Atlantic Sturgeon Acipenser oxyrinchus oxyrinchus 121 121 • Nassau Grouper (IUCN “”Endangered”) form predictable annual spawning Florida • Goal: Identifyareas of concentrateduse throughoutDry Tortugas NationalPark • University of North Florida Blacktip Shark Carcharhinus limbatus 43 112 by green (Chelonia mydas),hawksbill(Eretmochelysimbricata),and loggerhead Bonefish Albula vulpes 107 aggregationsthat make themvulnerableto overfishing • Determinedynamicsof movementsto,from and withinaggregations (Caretta caretta) marine turtles. • University of Florida/Program for Shark Research Spot Leiostomus xanthurus 107 107 • Array consistedof 83 acousticreceiversat thetime of thestudy,but havesince Goliath Grouper Epinephelus itajara 56 58 • Telemetry, diver survey, population genetics and reproductive physiology data been phased out. • USGS Gainesville and Miami Loggerhead Sea Turtle Caretta caretta 48 57 are being used to evaluate efficacy of current regulations and to develop a • PendingfurtherfundingUSGS hopesto redeploy~10 receiverswithinthe Dry Tiger Shark Galeocerdo cuivier 57 57 NationalConservationStrategyfor sustainablefishery management Tortugas boundary. Black Grouper Mycteroperca bonaci 35 56 Ecology of Young Bull Sharks in the Scalloped Hammerhead Shark Sphyrna lewini 55 55 Tripletail Lobotes surinamensis 16 55 Loxahatchee River, Florida. 1 2 3 4 Mutton Snapper Lutjanus analis 2 54 Migratory Behavior of the Western Atlantic Blacktip David Snyder , Johanna Imhoff ,GeorgeBurgess and Craig Layman Spawning Related Movement Patterns of Adult 1CSA OceanSciencesInc, 2Florida State University, 3University Nurse Shark Ginglymostoma cirratum 45 50 and University of Florida and 4North Carolina State Florida Largemouth Bass Micropterus salmoides floridanus 13 49 Atlantic Goliath Grouper Shark (Carcharhinus limbatus) Robert D. Ellis, ChristopherC. Koenig,FeliciaC. Coleman Beth Bowers and Stephen Kajiura Gray Snapper Lutjanus griseus 4 47 Florida Atlantic University American Alligator Alligator mississippiensis 44 44 Florida State University Coastal and Marine Laboratory Blacknose Shark Carcharhinus acronotus 43 43 Shortnose Sturgeon Acipenser brevirostrum 42 42 Diamondback Terrapin Malaclemys terrapin 41 41 Barracuda Sphyraena barracuda 40 Great Hammerhead Shark Sphyrna mokarran 40 40 • Determineresidence time within the river Sheepshead Archosargus probatocephalus 38 • Definebroad-scalemovements Bluntnose Stingray Dasyatis say 3 36 • Determinethe influenceof environmentalvariables. Finetooth Shark Carcharhinus isodon 36 36 • Since 2012, Atlantic Goliath Grouper (Epinephelus itajara) have been tracked to Overview of receivers within the FACT array. Partners have Gag Grouper Mycteroperca microlepis 11 33 determinetheir movementpatternsin relationto spawningaggregations access to a network of over 480 receivers deployed along a Caribbean Reef Shark Carcharhinus perezi 16 31 • Goliaths have been detected at over 40 different FACT-monitored reefs spread • Male blacktips(n=27) instrumentedwith acoustic transmitterand tracked Black Drum Pogonias cromis 18 27 alongthe coastfrom Georgiato southFlorida,a totaldistanceof over400-km. continuum of habitats from freshwater rivers to offshore reefs along the coast Fat Snook Centropomus parallelus 24 • Goliaths have shown relatively high (> 75%) site fidelity to the spawning and covers ~1100 km of coastline from the Florida Keys and • Blacktip sharks have beendescribedto remain south of Cape Hatteras,NC Nassau Grouper Epinephelus striatus 21 23 aggregations where they were tagged, and their movements show a strong • Thesedata suggesta northernboundaryof Long Island, NY Summary Spotted Seatrout Cynoscion nebulosus 23 lunar signal in aggregationformation. Bahamas north to South Carolina. Atlantic stingray Dasyatis sabina 22 22 • Partners have access to over 480 receivers and Smooth Butterfly Ray Gymnura micrura 21 Yellowtail Snapper Ocyurus chrysurus 18 Quantifying Threatened and Endangered have deployed over 2916 tags in over 60 Gulf Kingcroaker Menticirrhus littoralis 15 Natural Habitat Associations and the Effects of Resident or Transient? Gaining Ground on the Scamp Mycteroperca phenax 3 15 Juvenile and Sub-Adult Marine Turtle Habitat species. Black Sea Bass Centropristis striata 14 14 Dredging on Fish at the Canaveral Shoals, Use Patterns within Buck Island Reef National Function of Nearshore Hardbottom for Juvenile Florida Pompano Trachinotus carolinus 14 East‐Central Florida • Large-scale movement patterns of highly mobile Bonnethead Shark Sphyrna tiburo 11 13 Monument Ecosystem Green Turtles (Chelonia mydas) Eric A. Reyier1, Douglas M. Scheidt1, Joseph Iafrate2, Stephanie Watwood2, Russell H. Spinner Shark Carcharhinus brevipinna 13 13 Kristen M. Hart1 and Zandy Hillis-Starr2 Karen G. Holloway-Adkins Lowers1, Brenton D. Back1 East Coast Biologists, Inc., Indialantic, Florida 1U.S. Geological Survey, 2U.S. National Park Service species have been expanded and better defined Smalltooth Sawfish Pristis pectinata 11 (1)Kennedy Space Center Ecological Program/InoMedic Health Applications, (2) Naval Undersea Warfare Center Spanish Mackerel Scomberomorus maculatus 11 11 *OtherSpecies 15 44 as result of the FACT partnership Grand Total 1789 2916 • Small scale, localized movement and site fidelity * Other species with less than 10 tags per species include: Tarpon (Megalops atlanticus), Red Snapper (Lutjanus campechanus), Red Grouper (Epinephelus morio), patterns have been refined as a result of the White Grunt (Haemulon plumieri), Cownose Ray (Rhinoptera bonasus), Hawksbill sea • Sincetheprojectbeganin 2011we taggeda totalof n-102 juvenilesea turtles • Juvenile green turtles (Chelonia mydas) ranging from 23.0 to 33.0 cm straight FACT partnership turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata), Spotted Eagle Ray (Aetobatis narinari), Yellowfin carapace length forage macroalgae on the only natural hardbottom habitat in Grouper (Mycteroperca venenosa), Cobia (Rachycentron canadum), Dog Snapper (n=30 hawksbilland n=72 green) • Documentthe sitefidelityof fishes toa sand dredgesiteat Cape Canaveral,Fl. • Sixteentags (n=12green and n=4 hawksbills)have been replacedon nearshore watersoff Brevard County, Florida. • (Lutjanus jocu), Dusky Smoothhound Shark (Mustelus canis), Manta Ray (Manta • Eight fish species (coastal sharks, red drum, spot, Atlantic croaker, Spanish FACT tagged species have been detected within subsequentre-capturesto maintainbatterylife. mackerel)have been releasedto date. • Capture and tracking data indicateturtlesutilizethese areas year-round. birostris), Reef Shark (Carcharhinus perezi), Roughtail Stingray (Dasyatis centroura), • Averagetag retentionrates are 6 monthsfor greensand 14 monthsfor • Concurrent longline survey, will refine the fishery value of offshore sand shoals, • Long-term acoustic tracking studies currently underway will help determine the other arrays and conversely animals from other Schoolmaster (Lutjanus apodus), Southern Stingray (Dasyatis americana). temporaland spatialuse of thereefs. hawksbills. and generatelife historyinsightsfor overa dozen managed fish species. arrays have been detected within FACT