Corps and SC Biologists track Sturgeon in Savannah River

While most people may never see a shortnose or Atlantic sturgeon swimming through the Savannah River, a team of researchers is getting up-close-and-personal with these elusive, endangered species. Thanks to a partnership between the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SC DNR), researchers are safely catching sturgeon, inserting sonic transmitters inside them, and releasing them back into the river. The fish-safe technology allows scientists to monitor and record the sturgeon’s movements using an array of fixed receivers installed along the river. “Our cooperative agreement with the SC DNR allows us to capitalize on their previous and ongoing research, giving us a better understanding of sturgeon distribution and migration patterns in strategic locations throughout the river,” said William Bailey, planning division chief at the Corps’ Savannah District. Under the partnership, SC DNR biologists are tagging sturgeon for two separate studies: one in the estuary, and the other upstream at the New Savannah Bluff Lock and Dam near Augusta, Georgia. The four-man research team began work on the studies in August of 2013. “South Carolina DNR has been conducting sturgeon research in the Savannah River since the mid-80s,” said Bill Post, diadromous fishes coordinator with the SC DNR. “We have the skills and expertise to perform these studies in a way that is safe for the fish while producing reliable data.” The sturgeon studies are required as part of the Corps’ pre-construction monitoring plan for the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project (SHEP). The SHEP will deepen the Savannah federal shipping channel by 5 feet to increase transportation efficiencies and strengthen the national economy. Harbor deepening would allow additional saltwater to enter the harbor and travel further upstream into areas currently used by endangered sturgeon species. The increased salinity may reduce the suitability of some of these areas for young sturgeon. To compensate for those impacts, the SHEP includes construction of a large fish bypass around the first dam up the Savannah River, the New Savannah Bluff Lock and Dam.