A portable trap with electric lead catches up to 75% of an invasive fish species

Abstract

A novel system combining a trap and pulsed direct current electricity was able to catch up to 75% of tagged invasive sea lamprey Petromyzon marinus in free-flowing streams. Non-target mortality was rare and impacts to non-target migration were minimal; likely because pulsed direct current only needed to be activated at night (7 hours of each day). The system was completely portable and the annual cost of the trapping system was low (4,800 U.S. dollars). Use of the technology is poised to substantially advance integrated control of sea lamprey, which threaten a fishery valued at 7 billion U.S. dollars annually, and help restore sea lamprey populations in Europe where they are native, but imperiled. The system may be broadly applicable to controlling invasive fishes and restoring valued fishes worldwide, thus having far reaching effects on ecosystems and societies.