Effectiveness of Continuous versus Point Electrofishing for Fish Assemblage Assessment in Shallow, Turbid Aquatic Habitats

AbstractWe evaluated the relative effectiveness of continuous versus point electrofishing methods for describing fish assemblage metrics in the lower Atchafalaya River Floodway system, Louisiana. Continuous data were collected by boat electrofishing opposing shores of a 100-m reach for a total of 480 s. Point data were collected in an adjacent 100-m reach by boat electrofishing for 60 s at four points (240 s total) at 25-m intervals on alternating shorelines. We tested for significant differences between the methods with a linear model for species richness and CPUE (fish/min) and a generalized linear model for species diversity. We also compared the length frequencies of Largemouth Bass Micropterus salmoides between methods. We found no difference in diversity between methods but significantly higher species richness (mean = 1.46 species) and significantly lower CPUE (mean = –24.63 fish/min) for continuous electrofishing. We found no difference in Largemouth Bass length frequency between methods, but poin...