Experimental Data from an Examination of the Interaction of Grass Carp Eggs and Larvae with an Obliquely Oriented Bubble Screen in a Laboratory Flume

Behavioral deterrents targeting mature fish have been developed to control population expansion of invasive carp in non-native regions. However, there are currently no methods to control dispersal of early-life stage carp, which have no/limited mobility during their vulnerable, multi-day drift period in rivers. Capturing eggs and larvae in large numbers downstream of known spawning grounds warrants new methods that rely upon physics rather than behavioral response. This project tested a novel method using an oblique bubble screen (OBS) system redirect and concentrate downstream drifting eggs and larvae to one side of the channel for efficient removal in a laboratory setting. The effects of flow velocity and airflow rate on redirection of eggs, pre-gas bladder inflation (GBI) stage larvae, and dead larvae were examined. The same OBS configurations had demonstrated a high efficacy redirecting plastic spheres (egg surrogates) in a previous study (Prasad and others 2024). A detailed hydrodynamic characterization of the OBS was also completed. This data release contains hydrodynamic and egg and larval redirection data associated with the 2022 experiments examining the interaction of grass carp eggs and larvae with an obliquely oriented bubble screen in a recirculating laboratory flume. A detailed description of the data contained in this data release can be found in the associated metadata.

References cited:
Prasad, V., Suski, C. D., Jackson, P. R., George, A. E., Chapman, D. C., Fischer, J., and Tinoco, R. O., 2025, Limiting downstream dispersal of invasive carp egg surrogates using a laboratory-scale oblique bubble screen. Journal of Ecohydraulics, 9(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/24705357.2024.2332994.