Chad D. Thomas

Investigating trends in striped bass (Morone saxatilis) juvenile abundance is important for determining which factors may affect recruitment. We evaluated the abundance and distribution of juvenile striped bass in the Neuse River from 2006-2007 using beach seines and electrofishing techniques. Overall, little evidence of recruitment was found. Juvenile striped bass were not documented in the system during summer 2006 and were collected in low densities from isolated areas (2 of 34 sample sites) during summer 2007. Because catch was low, we could not adequately describe nursery habitat...

On 18 September 2003, Hurricane Isabel inundated northeastern North Carolina with heavy winds, rain, and storm surge that flushed high BOD organic materials and anoxic water from the floodplains adjacent to the lower Roanoke River and its tributaries into the river proper. Dissolved oxygen levels rapidly decreased and remained at or near 0 mg L-1 for 12 days causing an extensive fish kill throughout 25 km of the lower Roanoke River. Using boat-mounted electrofishing gear, we had surveyed fish assemblages at three fixed sampling sites on the lower Roanoke River during the summers of 2001...