What is tagging?
Tagging is inserting a small non-invasive serial numbered metal or plastic dart into the flesh of a fish next to its dorsal fin. The fish is photographed & the details are recorded (tag number, v length / overall length, species, GPS location etc.) The fish is then released alive carefully into the water to carry on with its normal life. The tagging is carried out quickly & methodically so that there is little or no stress to the fish. This ensures a better survival rate & little or no change in the behaviour of the fish.
When the fish is recaptured it is re-measured & all of the details such as location, depth, and tag number are recorded again along with any comments. From this information it can be established how far the fish has travelled & how big it has grown over a certain length of time. The angler has the choice of either keeping the fish or re-releasing the fish.
The information collected (field research) is used by scientists & educational institutions when studying our marine species.
The Tindale Marine Research Charitable Trust team is working through education towards having a network of trained keen experienced anglers to tag fish. The members of the trust will be engaging with the public in reporting captures & sightings. Are you looking for a challenge? Why not become a marine citizen scientist & tag the fish that you catch & see where they go or how big they grow.
The members of the trust have included a few handy resources in this website for the citizen scientist amongst us who would like to contribute or find out more. They have already had a large amount of interest in the research & hope to keep increasing the number of New Zealanders involved in this project
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