Performance Assessment of Suture Type in Juvenile Chinook Salmon Surgically Implanted with Acoustic Transmitters

The objective of this study was to determine the best overall suture material to close incisions from the surgical implantation of Juvenile Salmon Acoustic Telemetry System (JSATS) acoustic microtransmitters in subyearling Chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha. The effects of seven suture materials, four surgeons, and two water temperatures on suture retention, incision openness, tag retention, tissue inflammation, and tissue ulceration were quantified. The laboratory study, conducted by researchers at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, supports a larger effort under way for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Portland District, aimed at determining the suitability of acoustic telemetry for estimating short- and longer-term (30-60 days) juvenile-salmonid survival at Columbia and Snake River dams and through the lower Columbia River.