OVERVIEW PASSIVE INTEGRATED TRANSPONDER (PIT) TAG INFORMATION SYSTEM (PTAGIS) GOAL:
The goal of this project is to operate and maintain the Columbia Basin-wide database for PIT Tagged fish and to operate and maintain the established interrogation systems. The data collected by this system is accessible to all entities.
The measurable goal for the system is to collect 100% valid data and provide that data in "near-real" time with down-time of any system component of not more than one percent as measured during the period pr peak out-migration.
The Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tag has been developed as a research and management tool for monitoring the movement of juvenile and adult salmonids in the Columbia River Basin. Fish injected with this tag can be automatically recognized by detecting/recording devices strategically located within collection facilities at hydroelectric dams.
The PIT tag is an electronic tag 10 mm long by 2.1 mm in diameter that can be coded with one of 35 billion unique codes. The tag can be automatically detected and decoded in situ--eliminating the need to sacrifice, anesthetize, handle, or restrain fish during data retrieval.
Laboratory studies with juvenile chinook salmon and steelhead show no adverse effect of the tag on growth or survival. Once the tag is established in the body cavity, its location is found to be consistent over time. Behavioral tests show no significant effect of the tag on opercular rate, tail beat frequency, stamina, or post fatigue survival in juvenile steelhead. Active swimming does not affect tag retention.
The tag, encapsulated in glass, produces no evidence of infection in tagged fish. However, the PIT tag and tagging apparatus can be disinfected against Aeromonas salmonicida by exposure to a 50% or stronger solution of ethanol for a minimum of one minute.
DATA RETRIEVAL:
When a fish is tagged, all related information about the tagging event and the individual fish is captured and entered into a central database. This information includes its PIT tag number, tagging location, organization responsible for the tagging, species, run, weight, length, wild or hatchery type, marks and general health. Once tagged, the fish is then released into the river system.
As the tagged fish's out-migration occurs, it passes through the electronic interrogation coils established at five permanent sites in the Columbia River Basin. This electronic equipment automatically detects its PIT tag number, and records its time and location. This information is forwarded to the central database and is permanently coupled with its previous tagging information as the fish makes its way to the Pacific Ocean.
Once the cycle is complete and the tagged adult fish returns to the Columbia River system to spawn the fish is again automatically detected at the permanent interrogation sites as it travels up-river. These data detections are added to the previous information contained in the database about that individual fish and provides additional data of its history and its migration.
HISTORY:
National Marine Fisheries Services (NMFS) and the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) established a cooperative program in 1983 to evaluate the technical and biological feasibility of the PIT tag. This early effort has now evolved into a major research tool in the Columbia River Basin under the BPA program. Over 2,318,000 fish have been tagged and monitored since 1987.
Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission (PSMFC) has joined with the Columbia Basin Fish and Wildlife Authority (CBFWA) in establishing a steering committee to oversee the technical and policy issues involved with research organizations using the tag within the Columbia River Basin.
Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission has established a data center in Gladstone, Oregon. This center, the PIT Tag Operations Center (PTOC), houses a management team and the PIT Tag Information System (PTAGIS), a database system. The Center collects, processes and disseminates PIT tag information to interested parties via direct telephone dial-in service.
The PTOC also operates an office in Kennewick, Washington that provides the maintenance support required for operation of interrogation systems at the Columbia and Snake River dams.
To arrange for access to PTAGIS, please contact the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission, 45 SE 82nd Drive, Suite 100, Gladstone, Oregon 97027-2522, or call (503) 650-5400.
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Last modified: Tuesday, 28-Jan-97 11:14:15 PST