Effects of Pile Driving on the Residency and Movement of Tagged Reef Fish

Abstract

The potential effects of pile driving on fish populations and commercial fisheries have received significant attention given the prevalence of pile driving occurring in coastal habitats throughout the world. Behavioral impacts of sound generated from these activities on fish typically have a greater area of influence than physical injury, and may therefore adversely affect a greater portion of the local population. This study used acoustic telemetry to assess the movement, residency, and survival of 15 sheepshead (Archosargus probatocephalus) and 10 grey snapper (Lutjanus griseus) in Port Canaveral, Florida, USA, in response to 35 days of pile driving at a wharf complex. No obvious signs of mortality or injury to tagged fish were evident from the data. Received sound pressure levels from pile strikes on the interior of the wharf, where reef fish primarily occur, were on average 152–157 dB re 1 μPa (peak). No significant decrease in sheepshead daytime residency was observed during pile driving within the central portion of the wharf and area of highest sound exposure, and no major indicators of displacement from the exposure wharf with the onset of pile driving were observed. There was evidence of potential displacement from the exposure wharf that coincided with the start of pile driving observed for 2 out of 4 grey snapper, along with a decrease in daytime residency for a subset of this species with high site fidelity prior to the event. Results indicate that snapper may be more likely to depart an area of pile driving disturbance more readily than sheepshead, but were less at risk for behavioral impact given the lower site fidelity of this species.

Effects of a seismic survey on movement of free-ranging Atlantic cod

“…In line with these results, 23 we found several behavioral changes during and after the seismic survey period that can be attributed to acoustic disturbance. Cod gradually, but significantly, increased their distance to the nearest wind turbine after the sound exposure period compared to before and during exposure.…”

“…5,22 Moreover, if fish stay in an area despite a disturbance, there can still be behavioral and population-level effects. Iafrate et al, 23 for example, showed that resident reef fish that remained on site during pile-driving sounds were susceptible to behavioral effects during the exposure.…”

An overview of fish bioacoustics and the impacts of anthropogenic sounds on fishes

“…The greater amount of (still very limited) data available on behavioural responses to impulsive sound comes from studies of pile driving sounds. Moreover, most of these behavioural studies have been conducted on captive fish, maintained in confined spaces (Herbert‐Read et al, ; Spiga et al, ), though a few recent studies have been conducted on fishes in the wild (Hawkins et al, ; Iafrate et al, ; Roberts et al, ). For example, Hawkins et al () observed the behaviour of schools of S. sprattus and S. scombrus in mid water at a quiet coastal location, using an echosounder.…”

Acoustic Impacts of Offshore Wind Energy on Fishery Resources: An Evolving Source and Varied Effects Across a Wind Farm’s Lifetime

“…These investigations support the premise that certain species will be at greater risk to noise impacts than others, and even individuals or popula-tions within a species could show substantial variation in responses. Telemetry tagged sheepshead (Archosargus probatocephalus) showed no significant decrease in daytime residency or displacement during 35 days of pile driving at a wharf complex (Iafrate et al, 2016). Field studies of flatfish in US waters showed no effects from OWF construction pile driving or cable laying (Wilber et al, 2018).…”