Evaluating the impact of seismic surveying on American plaice (Hippoglossoides platessoides) movement using acoustic telemetry in an offshore marine environment
Abstract
The petroleum industry uses seismic surveys to identify hydrocarbon reserves in offshore environments, and in doing so, exposes marine fauna to high levels of anthropogenic noise. Seismic surveys often occur in areas that overlap with commercial fishing activities, and harvesters are concerned that noise generated from the surveys may negatively impact catch rates by displacing fish from fishing grounds. Oil and gas exploration has been ongoing periodically in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean surrounding Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada since the 1960s and American plaice (Hippoglossoides platessoides) are commercially important in the area, but the impacts of noise from seismic surveys have not been assessed for this species. We deployed 229 acoustic receivers and tagged 297 American plaice in 2024, following a modified Before-After-Control-Impact (BACI) study design, to examine fish movement in response to noise generated from 68 days of industry-based seismic surveying. Subtle changes in American plaice movement were attributable to seismic surveying, but we did not find substantial movement differences between control and impact sites located over 100 km apart. These results were corroborated with bottom trawling catch rate data. Movement differences were not representative of displacement from fishing grounds and would likely not result in reductions in commercial bottom trawling catch rates.
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