===FORM START===
0. Intended/preferred project code, if known? (May be altered by OTNDC)
format: XXXXXX (3-6 uppercase letters that do not already have a representation in the OTN DB. Will be assigned if left blank)
SJHARB

1. Title-style description of the project?
format:  < 70 words in 'paper title' form
Characterisation of fish movement and spatial use patterns in Saint John Harbour

2. Brief abstract of the project? 
format: < 500 words in 'abstract' form
The Port of Saint John (New Brunswick, Canada) is a major industrial harbour that hosts a large amount of vessel traffic (e.g., fishing, cruise, and container ships) as well as extensive oil and gas facilities. While economically beneficial, these activities contribute to the risk of marine pollution events, especially with respect to hydrocarbon spills (e.g. diesel, gasoline, crude oil). Marine pollution events in the area are particularly worrisome given that the surrounding waters host a highly diverse and productive ecosystem supporting a large number of ecological, cultural, and economic services to southwestern New Brunswick and beyond. Further complicating matters is that Saint John is in close proximity (~20 km) to the Musquash Marine Protected Area, which could be adversely impacted by nearby spills under the certain tide/current conditions. Together, this has prompted federal agencies to proactively develop response plans to mitigate potential impacts that a hydrocarbon spill could have on the marine environment. As these spill response plans are evidence based, primary research and data inputs are needed to be able to develop regionally-relevant and data-driven toolsets. However, the understanding of the spatial ecology of aquatic organisms in the Saint John Harbour area is lacking, which precludes the ability to develop effective spill response plans for the region. The purpose of this study was to characterise biodiversity patterns (i.e. presence/absence) as well as understand the spatial ecology of aquatic organisms in Saint John Harbour as primary data inputs into marine spill response planning efforts. In addressing this, an acoustic array consisting of nine acoustic receivers (VR2AR, 69 kHz, InnovaSea; 45.230019,-66.037788) was deployed adjacent to the navigational channel at the mouth of the approach to Saint John Harbour, effectively creating a large gated receiver array. Several species of fish, selected for their cultural and economic importance to the area, will be tagged in Spring 2025 and will be monitored for their use of the harbour. Tagged species will include Atlantic salmon, Atlantic mackerel, winter flounder, and tomcod. This project will also monitor for animals tagged outside of our research group, that will be used to help inform both local biodiversity indices and spatial use patterns in the harbour.  Together, these data will help to develop data-driven spill response toolsets allowing for more effective and informed reactions to marine pollution events by management agencies.  

3. Names, affiliations, email addresses, and ORCID (if available) of researchers involved in the project and their role. 

Michael Lawrence, DFO-SABS, principal investigator, mike.lawrence@dfo-mpo.gc.ca, point of contact, 0000-0002-4801-1580
Harri Pettitt-Wade, DFO-BIO, principal investigator, harri.pettitt-wade@dfo-mpo.gc.ca, point of contact, 0000-0002-2729-928X
Marc Trudel, DFO-SABS, principal investigator, marc.trudel@dfo-mpo.gc.ca, point of contact, 0000-0002-3397-1642
Adrian Hamer, DFO-SABS, principal investigator, Adrian.hamer@dfo-mpo.gc.ca, 0009-0008-1638-4965
Ryan Stanley, DFO-BIO, principal investigator, ryan.stanley@dfo-mpo.gc.ca, 0000-0002-6313-0844
Bethany Reinhart, DFO-SABS, Researcher, bethany.reinhart@dfo-mpo.gc.ca
Brent Wilson, DFO-SABS, Researcher, brent.wilson@dfo-mpo.gc.ca, 0009-0003-0914-9987
Casey O'Laughlin, DFO-SABS, Researcher, casey.olaughlin@dfo-mpo.gc.ca
Chris McKindsey, DFO-MLI, Researcher, chris.mckindsey@dfo-mpo.gc.ca, 0000-0002-3026-6454
Kirsty Lees, DFO-MLI, Researcher, Kirsty.lees@dfo-mpo.gc.ca, 0000-0002-5410-226X
Kyle Matheson, DFO-BIO, Researcher, kyle.matheson@dfo-mpo.gc.ca
Matthew Black, DFO-SABS, Technician, matthew.black@dfo-mpo.gc.ca
Peterson Coates, DFO-SABS, Researcher, peterson.coates@dfo-mpo.gc.ca
Robert Lennox, Dalhousie University, Collaborator, Robert.Lennox@Dal.Ca, 0000-0003-1010-0577
 
4. Project URL - can be left blank
5. Species being studied?  
format: Common name (scientific name)
Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar)
Atlantic mackerel (Scomber scombrus)
winter flounder (Pseudopleuronectes americanus)
tomcod (Microgadus tomcod) 

6. Location of the project? 
format: (city, state/province OR nearby landmark OR lat/long points in decimal degree), one per line
Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada

7. Start and end dates of the project, if known? 
format: YYYY-MM-DD to YYYY-MM-DD ('ongoing' is an acceptable end date)
2024-12-02 to ongoing 

8. Citation to use when referencing this project:
format: Lastname, I., Lastname, I. YYYY. [Title from question 1 or suitable alternative] Will be assigned if left blank.
Lawrence,  M.J., Pettit-Wade, H., Trudel, M., Hamer, A., Stanley, R., Reinhart, B., Wilson, B., O'Laughlin, C., McKindsey, C., Lees, K.,  Matheson, K., Black, M., Coates, P., Lennox R. 2024. Characterisation of fish movement and spatial use patterns in Saint John Harbour. 
===FORM END===