Trying to choose the less bad route: Individual migratory behaviour of Atlantic salmon smolts (Salmo salar L.) approaching a bifurcation between a hydropower station and a navigation canal

Renardy, S.; Takriet, A.; Benitez, J.-P.; Dierckx, A.; Baeyens, R.; Coeck, J.; Pauwels, I.S.; Mouton, A.; Archambeau, P.; Dewals, B.; Pirotton, M.; Erpicum, S.; Ovidio, M.

doi:/10.1016/j.ecoleng.2021.106304

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Trying to choose the less bad route: Individual migratory behaviour of Atlantic salmon smolts (Salmo salar L.) approaching a bifurcation between a hydropower station and a navigation canal

Renardy, S.; Takriet, A.; Benitez, J.-P.; Dierckx, A.; Baeyens, R.; Coeck, J.; Pauwels, I.S.; Mouton, A.; Archambeau, P.; Dewals, B.; Pirotton, M.; Erpicum, S.; Ovidio, M. (2021). Trying to choose the less bad route: Individual migratory behaviour of Atlantic salmon smolts (Salmo salar L.) approaching a bifurcation between a hydropower station and a navigation canal. Ecol. Eng. 169: 106304. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoleng.2021.106304

In: Ecological Engineering. Elsevier: Amsterdam; London; New York; Tokyo. ISSN 0925-8574; e-ISSN 1872-6992, more

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Keywords

Pisces [WoRMS]; Salmo salar Linnaeus, 1758 [WoRMS]
Brackish water

Author keywords

Migratory fish; Downstream migration; Hydroelectricity; Hydraulics; River restoration; Large-sized river

Authors		Top \| Dataset
Renardy, S., more Takriet, A., more Benitez, J.-P., more Dierckx, A., more Baeyens, R., more	Coeck, J., more Pauwels, I.S., more Mouton, A., more Archambeau, P., more	Dewals, B., more Pirotton, M., more Erpicum, S., more Ovidio, M., more

Abstract

Contrary to small- and medium-sized rivers, little attention has been paid to the downstream migration of Atlantic salmon smolts in large-sized rivers and the size-related impact of hydropower stations. From 2014 to 2016, we investigated the downstream migration of n = 72 acoustic-tagged smolts in the Meuse river at a bifurcation zone between a hydropower station equipped with three Kaplan turbines and a navigation canal. A hydrodynamic model that solves the depth-integrated shallow water equations on a Cartesian grid using a finite volume technique was used to infer the influence of water discharge and flow velocity on the smolts' behaviour upstream of the hydroelectric complex. Of the migrating smolts, 41.5% performed back and forth movements before approaching the complex for the first time, sometimes over long distances and at a slow pace, leading to significant delays (3–298 h) Beyond about 250 m³ s⁻¹, the water flow direction changes towards the hydropower station with a gradual acceleration. A median water discharge of 161 m³ s⁻¹ and associated median flow velocity of 0.14 m s⁻¹ tended to favour a more direct and downstream movement towards the hydropower station. On the other hand, the navigation canal was mainly approached at low water discharge (median 132 m³ s⁻¹), due to a higher flow velocity (median 0.11 m s⁻¹) at the entrance. Of the released smolts, only 38.6% passed through the complex, of which 36.4% migrated by the navigation canal and 63.6% by the hydropower station, with a median research time of 04:44. Among all the released individuals, the escapement rate at the end of the study site was 2.9% by the canal and 8.3% by the Meuse river. This site, which offers two non-optimal, unattractive and unsafe migration routes, turns out to be problematic for successful downstream smolt migration.

Dataset
Maas: Baeyens, R., De Maerteleire, N., Mouton, A.M., Ovidio, M., Bennitez, J.P. & Coeck, J. 2013. Migration behaviour of eel and salmon in the Meuse river., more

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