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An Annular Chamber for Aquatic Animal Preference Studies
Author(s) -
Myrick Christopher A.,
Folgner D. Kurtis,
Cech Joseph J.
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
transactions of the american fisheries society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.696
H-Index - 86
eISSN - 1548-8659
pISSN - 0002-8487
DOI - 10.1577/02-154
Subject(s) - rainbow trout , preference , juvenile , environmental science , salinity , ecology , biology , fishery , fish <actinopterygii> , mathematics , statistics
Preference chambers are widely used to measure the responses of aquatic organisms to different environmental gradients, such as temperature, salinity, and pollutants. Most of the preference chambers used to date have been handicapped by the presence of one or more confounding variables, including differential light intensities and water depths and the presence of cover. We present a design and test results for an annular preference chamber with uniform environment water depth, light intensity, and cover. Preliminary testing with juvenile anadromous rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss showed that they selected temperatures (±SE) of 18.1 ± 0.3°C, a result that compares favorably with values reported in the literature. We demonstrate that the annular chamber is a viable alternative to the more traditional horizontal, vertical, or shuttlebox‐type designs for preference studies of aquatic organisms.