Atlantic Cod Acoustic Detections in Placentia Bay 2018-2020

Placentia Bay, Newfoundland, contains 2,094,024 acoustic detections from 63 unique transmitters deployed in Atlantic cod. Data was collected from 14 year-round receivers forming four gates between 2018 and 2020, with passive collection potentially extending to 2030. The project was conducted by Fisheries and Oceans Canada's Groundfish Section.

Use Cases

• Analyze detection patterns of 63 unique transmitters across 14 acoustic receivers to study cod movement in Placentia Bay.
• Map spatial use of the Bar Haven spawning grounds using receiver location data and detection timestamps.
• Investigate multi-year residency by examining detections for the 37 fish detected across multiple years or receivers.
• Model seasonal habitat use by correlating detection data with the four receiver gate locations (Bar Haven, Centre, Eastern, Western Channel).

Strengths

• Large detection volume of over 2 million records from a controlled study.
• Multi-year temporal coverage from 2018-2020 with potential for data through 2030.
• Spatially structured design with 14 receivers organized into four distinct monitoring gates.

Limitations

• Sample size is limited to 63 unique transmitters, primarily from 45 cod tagged in the program.
• Geographic scope is focused solely on Placentia Bay, limiting broader population inferences.
• Data completeness for individual fish is variable, as only 43 of the detected cod were tagged within the bay.

Provenance

Source

Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Groundfish Section, Newfoundland and Labrador Science Branch.

Collection Method

Acoustic telemetry using 14 deployed receivers and 162 transmitters deployed in Atlantic cod.

Time Range

Primary deployment 2018-2020; transmitter deployments 2019-2022; passive collection may extend to 2030.

Freshness

Last updated March 2026, with ongoing passive data collection.

Geography

Placentia Bay, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, with receivers forming four specific gates.