Equipment
VEMCO - Acoustic transmitters for fish
VEMCO: Tracking individual fish over longer distances and time intervals. A unique and flexible detection system allows individual fish to be tracked and their behaviour interpreted, using a series of detection stations.
Connecting larger and smaller water networks is not an issue here. VEMCO receivers are powerful enough to detect a tagged fish within a range of a few hundred metres from a detection station. This range depends on the type of receiver and the local and weather conditions.
After activation, the small VEMCO transmitters are surgically inserted into the abdominal cavity through a small 1-2 cm incision.
When a tagged fish is near a detection station, its unique number and time is stored in the station's memory. In this way, the migration patterns and choices of fish become clear. When the receivers are placed in strategic locations, the timekeeping of different stations within the same location can be used to find out where a fish is in the water body.
Why VEMCO?
- The detection stations can be flexibly deployed depending on the demand. The measurement can run for 15 months and can therefore be broadly adjusted to the timing of the migration.
- It is suitable for both small and large water systems.
- Individual migration patterns over longer distances and time intervals can be visualised.
VEMCO technical information
The choice of transmitters depends on the size of the fish, the transmission interval, detection distance and battery life.
The transmission interval is programmed in advance and is tailored to the test conditions and the user's requirements.
A VEMCO VR2W detection station is a hydrophone with a receiver, data storage devices and a battery. This equipment is surrounded by a cylinder (approx. 30x10 cm) that can be installed at depths of up to 500 metres, in both fresh and salt water, on a pole or an anchor with a buoy. The battery life is approximately 15 months. After the test, the data are read out with specially developed software for further analysis.
Example of transmitter research in the North Sea Canal
