Frogs and snakes will move away from the field.” But this is very rare because only fish are attracted to the electric field. “However, the equipment will temporarily stun frogs and snakes if they enter the electric field. And aquatic insects are too small to be affected by the current. Turtles are very resistant to electrofishing equipment, usually showing no effects at all. The fish are usually fully recovered by the time we place them in our aerated livewell (less than a minute). “We use the minimum settings required to temporarily stun the fish long enough for us to dip them up. We use a highly specialized control box that allows us to manipulate the output and waveform of the current applied to the water,” he said. “Electrofishing will not harm anything when the voltage/amperage is set accordingly. One way to avoid bad publicity is to do the job precisely. Working in residential communities always draws a crowd however, none of them have ever reacted in a negative manner.” “However, we are typically working in areas where the client is aware of the process. “In 27 years, I have never experienced negative pushback for electrofishing,” he said. Photo courtesy Magnolia Fisheriesįarquhar said it’s a safe and humane technique and there has been no criticism or protests about its use. “Once the fish were collected, we had to place them in a large tub which was lifted out of the river bed, over the trees, and into our fish hauling truck for relocation in a public reservoir.”Ī crane lifts an electrofishing boat over a concrete retaining wall in Flower Mound, Texas, in October 2021. It was inaccessible by truck and they had to use a sky crane to lift our boat over large trees and into the river 30 feet below,” he said. “It was a complete fish removal and relocation on a stretch of a large river. “The worst part is being out in the elements most of the day, whether it be controlling algae in the 100-plus days of summer or delivering fish in an ice storm,” he said.įarquhar well remembers the most difficult day he had on the job. There are some challenging sides to it as well. Always makes me feel good to see a smiling client holding a big, fat bass!” “When they send me photos of the results of our management (notably large bass), it justifies the detail that I put into the work and recommendations to get them to that point. “The best part is being able to help lake owners improve the quality of angling in their lakes,” Farquhar said. He said there are many rewards to his work, including providing customers with a greatly improved body of water. The main goal of most of our clients is producing trophy bass angling and requires electrofishing a minimum of every two years.”īryan Farquhar with a pair of trophy bass captured during an electrofishing survey on a ranch in Godley, Texas, in November 2020. This allows us to make recommendations on improving the fishery. We collect data such as species diversity, density estimates, body condition information, and age/growth data. “The primary reason for electrofishing is to perform a comprehensive survey of the fish population. “We electrofish for residential homeowner associations, ranch owners, fishing clubs and entities performing pond/lake drainings for dredging or construction projects,” Farquhar told Kinute. Humans are also susceptible to electrofishing - falling into water could cause fatal heart fibrillation.īryan Farquhar of Magnolia Fisheries in North Texas has been utilizing electrofishing for more than a quarter-century. The fish are unharmed by the electrical stun. Larger fish are generally more affected than smaller. Different fish species require different electric frequencies catfish, for example, require lower frequencies than do other species. Electricity stuns fish, causing involuntary muscle contractions that immobilize for short periods of time.įish roll to the surface and can then be netted for various purposes, including fish studies and species control methods. It relies on electrodes to deliver direct current at high-voltage through water. The angling technique is a safe, efficient way to deal with unwanted, invasive species, to remove fish for construction or other purposes, or to conduct species counts and evaluations.
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