Data from: Response of seaward migrating European eel (Anguilla anguilla) to manipulated flow fields ...

• Main Authors: Piper, Adam T., Manes, Costantino, Siniscalchi, Fabio, Marion, Andrea, Wright, Rosalind M., Kemp, Paul S.
• Format: Dataset
• Language: English
• Published: Dryad 2015
• Subjects: ecohydraulics; Anguilla anguilla; behavioural fish guidance; hydropower; Hydrodynamics; European eel
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.5061/dryad.c77jn; https://datadryad.org/stash/dataset/doi:10.5061/dryad.c77jn

Anthropogenic structures (e.g. weirs and dams) fragment river networks and restrict the movement of migratory fish. Poor understanding of behavioural response to hydrodynamic cues at structures currently limits the development of effective barrier mitigation measures. This study aimed to assess the effect of flow constriction and associated flow patterns on eel behaviour during downstream migration. In a field experiment, we tracked the movements of 40 tagged adult European eels (Anguilla anguilla) through the forebay of a redundant hydropower intake under two manipulated hydrodynamic treatments. Interrogation of fish trajectories in relation to measured and modelled water velocities provided new insights into behaviour, fundamental for developing passage technologies for this endangered species. Eels rarely followed direct routes through the site. Initially, fish aligned with streamlines near the channel banks and approached the intake semi-passively. A switch to more energetically costly avoidance ... : Fish_detections_UL_CHFish positions derived from acoustic telemetry contained within excel file with 5 columns. 'Record' denotes tag detection numbered consecutively in sequence; 'tag_number' denotes the fish identification number; ‘PosX’ denotes fish x coordinate in UTM; ‘PosY’ denotes fish y coordinate in UTM, ‘Treatment’ denotes experimental treatment ...