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Satellite Tagging Reveals the Secrets of Swordfish

November 11, 2022 By InTheBite Magazine

Tagging expedition photo

(Photo/Steve Dougherty)

By Steve Dougherty

A highly migratory species that knows few boundaries, broadbill swordfish display a wide temperature tolerance and are capable of undertaking extensive vertical migrations. These fascinating predators have captivated fishermen since the earliest seafarers braved venturing offshore and possess unique physiological and morphological adaptations, allowing them to successfully hunt in the dark depths they routinely visit. Specialized gills allow for maximum oxygen extraction, with a cranial heater keeping eyes and brain warm to sharpen their vision when subjected to extremely cold temperatures

Determined to uncover the many remaining secrets of swordfish, a team of enthusiastic oceanographers has set out to explore the relationship between movements of pelagic fish and their environment through satellite tagging data-deficient broadbills and monitoring
the three-dimensional space of the open ocean.

Dr. Peter Gaube Talks Tagging

Tagging expedition photo

Daytime tactics afford the unique opportunity for researchers to study live swordfish up close and personal. (Photo/Steve Dougherty)

“We’re trying to figure out how swordfish populations all over the world vary their use of the surface versus deep ocean,” Dr. Peter Gaube, principal oceanographer at the University of Washington says. “Wherever in the world swordfish swim, we want to know where they are in the water column. Swordfish are an integral part of the largest migration on Earth, which happens every single day. With the setting of the sun, swordfish and countless other fish, squid and crustaceans rise to the surface to feed. The sunrise signals a massive migration back to deeper water in the ocean twilight zone.

“However, how deep swordfish dive, and why, is still unknown. By tracking the location and movement of swordfish, we have started to unlock their mysteries and also those mysteries of the uncharted depths. This is ultimately going to give us some valuable information about where all their food is. And that food source, those deep-sea animals that live in the twilight zone, is likely so incredibly important to the ocean, and we literally know next to nothing about it.”

The First Attempt

Tagging expedition photo

(Photo/Steve Dougherty)

Years in the making, the program’s initial swordfish-tagging expedition materialized in August 2019 and was wildly successful. “We came to South Florida to fish with Tony DiGiulian, R.J. Boyle and John Bassett because we needed a place somewhere in the world where we could reliably catch upward of 10 swordfish in four days on the water. We were just getting started with this project, and goal number one was to visit a destination where we knew we could get our hands on a lot of fish,” Dr. Camrin Braun, assistant professor in the School of Aquatic and Fisheries Sciences at the University of Washington says.

The bite was not red-hot, but in four days of fishing, the team released five tagged swordfish: Max, Simone, Anthony, Oliver and Rex. “The types of tags we used included the old workhorse pop-up satellite archival tags (PSAT) researchers have been using for decades, but we also had great success with smart position and temperature (SPOT) tags achieving real-time data on swordfish movements. We partnered with the world’s leading satellite tag manufacturer, Wildlife Computers, to build custom sensors to observe how these predators swim in three-dimension. Using these trajectories, we are transforming our understanding of swordfish migration. We also experimented using different attachment techniques, both dorsal fin and tether mounts, to optimize performance and maximize retention,” Braun says.

Strengths and Limitations of Tagging

Tagging with PSATs is expensive but highly efficient in gathering data through depth, temperature and light levels used to estimate location. While attached, PSATs do not transmit data. Their programming makes them detach after a specific period and float to the surface—180 days in this case. Fine-scale data sets are then transmitted to the Argos satellite network without the tag having to be recovered. For more accurate movement data, scientists pair the devices with SPOT tags that can track position with greater resolution.

The limitation here is that the antenna must break the surface to facilitate the streaming of data, which is why Braun and Gaube developed a method and manner of dorsal mounting. The final design featured a robust nitinol antenna, with custom bracket mounted as high on the fin as possible to improve Argos transmission. Perhaps the biggest issue is calming ornery fish for long enough to attach the tags.

Looking Out for the Fish

“We’re doing everything we can to release these fish in the best possible health,” project coordinator Tony DiGiulian says. “That’s the objective of the project, but we caught a few that were deemed not eligible for release. The largest fish we set free, with an estimated weight of 300 pounds, was also the fish we felt might have the most difficulty surviving the encounter.

“When we first let her go, she had trouble regaining buoyancy and momentarily floated on her side. We contemplated aborting the tag if she had trouble swimming down a second time, but after pushing water through her gills she lit up and kicked off with a powerful thrust. We soon found out that this fish was active and very much alive, which is a perfect example of how resilient these fish are and also reiterates the importance of keeping large pelagic species in the water with their heads submerged prior to release.”

The Results

Tagging expedition photo

Dr. Camrin Braun readies a SPOT tag with custom dorsal mount. (Photo/Steve Dougherty)

The classic image of a basking swordfish is a visual that’s forever on our minds. However, fishermen in Florida do not encounter sunning fish nearly as often as in cold water climates. Considering that the SPOT tag’s antenna must be out of the water with clear access to the sky in order to transmit data, and the preconceived notion that swordfish in Florida do not need to exhibit surface dwelling behavior, the project delivered, and continues to produce, an astounding amount of data. The 300-pounder tagged on day one ascended to the surface mid-day less than one week after its release, sending a ping for a 15-second interval. This fish’s pop-up tag has since appeared again very close to the initial tagging site, which shows some residency.

Simone and Max

A spunky 90-pound sword we named Simone and had released on the expedition’s second day came to the surface and transmitted a signal about 60 hours later. Simone has displayed the most interesting dynamics, covering nearly 9,000 miles in a little over a year. As of press date, she is offshore of Sable Island, Nova Scotia. In the initial month after the tagging efforts, researchers received pings from all five fish at the surface, basking during the day or feeding during the night off the coast of Florida.

“The tag on Max worked so well that it eventually killed the battery. This particular fish followed the edge of the Gulf Stream and came to the surface a lot. We made an experimental tether for this towable SPOT tag, and it turns out it has produced the best data anyone has ever gotten from a swordfish. The dynamics of that fish where it was near the surface and that specific tag placement just worked. We should have programmed it so the battery would’ve lasted longer, but we wanted to take advantage of any opportunity for the tag to talk to the satellite. Turns out that this particular fish came to the surface so often that it talked to the satellite multiple times every day and the battery only lasted three months,” Gaube says.

What Research Remains

Electronic tagging has uncovered heaps of advanced movement information across many marine taxa, but swordfish present particular tracking difficulties. While there have been tagging efforts in southern California, tagging that seeks to acquire real-time movements represent a new realm for swordfish in Florida.

“We are trying to piece together and analyze depth and basking rates, dive duration and periodicity, but the data is still coming in. It’s incredibly exciting and the big picture goal for us and the reason why we study swordfish is because we’re really interested in the deep ocean. We are collecting the fundamental position and dive data from these fish in order to learn about the distribution of their food, which primarily consists of mesopelagic fish, the most numerous vertebrates on Earth.

“The deep ocean is the last frontier, and the cool thing about swordfish is that it’s one of the only species in the world that spends half of its time at the surface and half of its time in the deep ocean. It’s the only species that moves up and down in this manner every single day. So it’s almost a model predator that we can use to study this place that is otherwise so incredibly hard for us to access,” Braun reinforced.

Tagging expedition photo

(Photo/Steve Dougherty)

Future Tagging Efforts

Collaborating with like-minded scientists will increase the speed and rate of learning. These tagged fish have been populated to the OCEARCH Global Tracker, where they can be observed by the public in nearly real-time. The study has been more successful than any of us could have hoped, and the team is gearing up for their next expedition in the Gulf of Mexico, with new tags holding additional sensors.

“We recently had a project in Saudi Arabia to do a similar thing, and unfortunately, the only swordfish we caught swallowed the hook and died, but we did tag a pelagic thresher shark which has similar behavior. We are hoping to continue the efforts in Saudi Arabia and awaiting a grant to allow us to deploy 15 additional tags in the Red Sea. Stateside, we are pursuing projects in North Carolina and Texas, but Covid-19 slowed these down. Because our entire fieldwork has been canceled this year, we’ve decided to double down in an effort here in Washington to try to be the first to capture a swordfish in the pacific northwest—and then tag it,” Braun concluded.

Tagging expedition photo

(Photo/Steve Dougherty)

Filed Under: Gulf of Mexico, News Tagged With: Billfish Tagging, Fishing Technology, migration, research, swordfish

ZF Increase Research and Development Activities After Record Sales in 2017

April 10, 2018 By InTheBite Editor

ZF posts record sales in 2017; announces increased research and development activities

  • ZF chief executive officer announces further expansion of research and development activities during presentation of the company’s annual financial statements
  • The technology company produced record sales of €36.4 billion in 2017
  • Adjusted EBIT was higher at €2.3 billion, despite increases in research and development spending
  • Scheider believes that start-up culture could also be fostered in big companies

Friedrichshafen, Germany. ZF Friedrichshafen AG will increase their research and development spending again and work even faster to produce technologies for the future of mobility. CEO Wolf-Henning Scheider, who has been in office since February 1, made this statement at the company’s annual press conference in Friedrichshafen today. ZF ended the fiscal year 2017 with record sales of €36.4 billion, which, when adjusted for exchange rate effects and M&A activities, elicited organic growth of 6 percent. ZF also further reduced the debt incurred from the acquisition of TRW Automotive and posted a higher adjusted EBIT of €2.3 billion, despite increased research and development costs.

“The world of mobility is spinning at high speed,” said Scheider. “We plan to provide our customers with pioneering solutions in all fields under our motto ‘See – Think – Act’, which is why we will further increase our research and development spending.”

In 2017, ZF spent €2.2 billion on research and development, an increase of almost 15 percent compared to 2016. This year, significantly more than two billion is set to be channeled into development work around the world, with the aim of advancing electric drives and the hybridization of transmission technology as well as vehicle safety systems and automated driving. This means that the share of the budget allocated to R&D will be raised from 6.1 percent to around 6.5 percent this year. Equally, ZF wishes to continue investing in property, plant and equipment (2017: €1.4 billion). Two new plants for the production of electric drive components are planned, among other things.

Sales increase by six percent
In 2017, ZF experienced a nominal increase of 3.6 percent to €36.4 billion in Group sales (2016: €35.2 billion). Adjusted for exchange rate effects and M&A activities, organic sales growth is six percent. “This result shows our employees’ commitment and high level of motivation,” said Scheider. The Commercial Vehicle Technology and Car Powertrain Technology Divisions had above-average sales increases of 7.2 percent and 9.3 percent, respectively. “Our extremely efficient automatic passenger car transmissions contribute to reducing CO2emissions. They are therefore a key component in attaining the European limit targets and global climate targets, and are in high demand. Combined with the highly integrated electric motor, this technology still features great growth potential,” said Scheider.

Regional growth was mixed. In both Europe and North America, sales rose by over three percent. Organic growth of eight percent in the Asia-Pacific region was reduced to around two percent by the negative currency effect of the Chinese Renminbi. It appears that the economic crisis in South America has, to a large extent, been overcome. Sales there increased significantly by around 26 percent, coming from a low level.

The headcount for the ZF Group was 146,148 on the effective date, December 31, 2017 (2016: 136,820). Additional posts were created mainly in China, Mexico, Portugal, the USA and Germany, most of them within the Active & Passive Safety Technology, E-Mobility, Car Chassis Technology and Car Powertrain Technology Divisions. Of these, around 1,700 worldwide were attributed to research and development alone.

Stable profits, greater productivity
Last year, ZF not only increased its sales but also its profit situation. Adjusted earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) increased from €2.2 billion to €2.3 billion; the adjusted EBIT margin was equal to the previous year’s, at 6.4 percent. Both sales and earnings are therefore at the upper end of the amounts predicted early in 2017. The adjusted free cash flow amounted to €1.8 billion at the end of last year (2016: €2.0 billion). The equity ratio has risen again, from 21 to 24.4 percent. “We are looking back at a profitable and successful year,” said Dr. Konstantin Sauer, chief financial officer at ZF. “We have improved our processes and cost structures within a challenging environment, and have become even more productive. We have therefore been able to finance higher budgets for research and development, at the same time improving the earnings quality.”

In around two and a half years after acquiring TRW Automotive in May 2015, ZF succeeded in reducing gross debt to €6.4 billion, almost half of the original amount, by the end of 2017. “Based on the strong free cash flow, our aim is to further reduce financial liabilities and continue to drive forward the debt relief of the ZF Group in 2018,” said Sauer.

Prospects for 2018
Market development is volatile around the world. Taking this into consideration, ZF CEO Scheider predicts organic growth of around five percent for 2018. ZF expects to conclude the sale of the Body Control Systems Business Unit to Luxshare soon, which will result in a proportional drop in sales. Consequently, ZF expects Group sales of around €36.5 billion. As in the previous year, ZF is aiming to achieve an adjusted EBIT of around six percent and an adjusted free cash flow of over one billion euros.

More speed for innovation
The requirements of the dynamic development in the automotive industry are highly demanding, so ZF’s CEO Wolf-Henning Scheider wishes to accelerate project-related cooperation within the Group. “We are reinforcing the implementation of cross-divisional teams with a high level of autonomy in decision-making and cooperation,” said Scheider. “They are better able to adapt to the requirements in the new fields of technology, which are changing so quickly. We work even more closely with our customers for these projects and at an earlier stage so that attractive products can be brought into volume production much more quickly. However, this also means that a project can be abandoned swiftly if the expectations cannot be met. With this approach, a start-up culture can be present in a big group.”

ZF teams would constantly have to be recreated, strictly according to the current project requirements so that they can answer the questions of the future, in order to quickly develop the best possible solutions for the customers. Several automated driving projects serve as examples for this. “In conjunction with our tried-and-trusted development of volume production projects in the traditional fields, we now also work with a dual operating system,” explained Scheider.

Filed Under: General News, News, Press Releases Tagged With: development, InTheBite, mobility, research, sales, technology, ZF

FECOP – Researching Pacific Tarpon in Costa Rica

February 28, 2018 By InTheBite Editor

FECOP to Study Pacific Tarpon in Costa Rica

San Jose, Costa Rica-February 27, 2018- Twenty-seven years ago, Didiher Chacon was a young biologist from the National University in Costa Rica. Todd Staley, co-creator of 12 Fathom Jigs that forever changed tarpon fishing in Boca Grande, Florida, in the late 1980s, had just moved to Costa Rica to manage Archie Fields’ Rio Colorado Lodge, a world-famous tarpon destination. Chacon stopped by the lodge one day to explain he was collecting tarpon samples for analysis by Dr. Roy Crabtree in Florida. Staley, who was familiar with Crabtree’s work, jumped at the chance to catch a few tarpon and help science at the same time.

Chacon went on to become well respected in marine conservation circles. He is currently the director of the NGO, Latin American Sea Turtles, as well as a professor at the National University in the post-degree program. Staley moved to the Pacific side of Costa Rica after Archie Fields died and for two decades managed famous billfish destinations like Golfito Sailfish Ranch and Crocodile Bay. He began working full time for FECOP, a Costa Rica sport-fishing advocacy and conservation group, last May.

“I first saw a tarpon roll in the Pacific back in 1995,” Staley explains. “For a minute I thought I was losing my mind but then I thought, I have seen tarpon roll my whole life, I know one when I see one.” Eventually one of the charter captains returned to the dock one day with a 40-pound tarpon and had no idea what it was. Since then clients have hooked five to 10 tarpon a year, occasionally landing and releasing a few. The largest tarpon taken was estimated around 130 pounds. It has always been assumed that the tarpon, which are not indigenous to Pacific waters, passed through the Panama Canal and took up residence on the Pacific coast.

The puzzle got even more interesting when Saul Porras caught a baby tarpon while snook fishing at the mouth of a creek on the Osa Peninsula in southern Costa Rica. Chances that little guy passed through the canal and swam that far are extremely slim. So, are tarpon now breeding in the Pacific? They have been caught all along the Pacific coast of Costa Rica, especially in the southern zone. An increasing number have been taken in the Sierpe and Coto Rivers. Tarpon have also been have recorded as far south as Colombia and as far north as El Salvador.

FECOP agreed to sponsor a project to find out more about tarpon in the Pacific. Staley contacted Chacon (the two had remained friends over the years) and he agreed to work on the science part of the project. “The Sierpe Wetlands are perfect habitat for juvenile tarpon,” Chacon says. “That very well may account for the increase in numbers of tarpon caught there in the last few years.” Most of the river tarpon are small, less than 30 pounds, but some as large as 100 pounds have also been captured.

Tropical Storm Nate delayed the project when massive amounts of rain fell, which not only caused major landslides but also completely flushed everything out many of the coastal rivers.

Phase 1 of the project will concentrate in southern Costa Rica. A DNA comparison will be done between Pacific-caught tarpon and tarpon taken at various locations on the Caribbean side of the country. Biologists will also study what the Pacific tarpon have been feeding on. This can be accomplished with a small tissue sample without sacrificing the fish. All Pacific-caught tarpon will also be tagged.

Chacon notes that there is a possibility tarpon could change the ecology of the rivers over time. So far it is not yet known what these tarpon are feeding on or how they will affect native fish. But the ever-increasing encounters along Costa Rica’s Pacific coast make it worth finding out.

For more information contact: www.fishcostarica.org  or  info@fecop.org

 

 

Filed Under: General News, News, Press Releases Tagged With: Costa Rica, fathom jigs, FECOP, fishing, InTheBite, pacific ocean, research, san jose, tarpon

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