Student researchers at TRU are tracking the movements and behaviours of yellow perch, an invasive eastern species that poses a threat to salmon and other native species in BC lakes, in hopes of one day eradicating perch without harming other fish stocks.

Carmen releasing a tagged perch back into Pinaus Lake (photo by James Arner)

Carmen Tattersfield is completing the study for her Masters of Science in Environmental Sciences degree, supervised by associate professor of limnology and fisheries, Dr. Brian Heise, with main funding from the Fraser Salmon and Watershed Program. Bachelor of Natural Resource Science student James Arner is working with Carmen as an undergraduate research assistant for the summer, catching and tagging perch in several BC Interior lakes.

Carmen using an antenna to follow the tagged perch around Pinaus Lake (photo by James Arner)

As part of the two-year study, Carmen will tag perch with radio transmitters and collect data about their habits, such as feeding ecology, habitat preferences, and spawning times. Five perch in Pinaus Lake have been tagged to date, with 24 in total planned for this year. In the next phase, Carmen will set up artificial spawning substrates, to determine if the perch will lay their eggs on substrates that can be removed from the lake, thereby destroying the eggs. Methods of affecting spawning success could control the population of perch in BC lakes, particularly in larger lakes like the Adams and Shuswap, where the impact of perch could be devastating, and the current method of poisoning the perch along with all other fish in the lake isn’t feasible.

In addition to Carmen, a BNRS grad who has been employed in the field of fisheries for the past five years with both a consulting firm and Department of Fisheries and Oceans, there are other TRU Natural Resource Science graduates attached to the project. Brian’s former students Tami Kendall and Andrew Klassen are the contacts at two other project collaborators, CN Rail and the BC Ministry of Forests, Land and Natural Resource Operations. Brian stresses that the study is primarily a student research effort, building skills and leadership. Another undergraduate research assistant position may be added during the winter.

Yellow perch on a measuring board (photo by James Arner)