Reliable fish tagging methods are needed to conduct studies (e.g., movement, habitat, abundance) that inform conservation and management decisions; however, dependable tagging approaches are lacking for many small-bodied fishes. Therefore, our study objective was to determine survival, tag retention (visible implant elastomer [VIE], PIT, or light-activated microtransponder [“p-Chip”]) and tagging effects on short-term growth of the federally threatened Arkansas River Shiner Notropis girardi. We also examined the use of anesthesia to reduce fish mortality (i.e., reduce handling time) and improve tagging efficiency. Fish tagged with p-Chips had the highest survival (87%), whereas VIE-tagged fish had the second highest survival (67%). Visible implant elastomer tags were retained in our fish 88% of the time, and retention was also high using p-Chips (72%). Location of the VIE tag did not significantly affect survival or retention rates. Survival of PIT-tagged fish significantly increased from 53% to 83% when handling time was reduced; however, tag retention was relatively low in both cases (50% and 45%, respectively). The majority of tagged fish across experiments (83–100%) gained weight regardless of tag type. If the research or management goal is to tag Arkansas River Shiner or similar species with individual identification, p-Chips appear to be an appropriate tag. Particularly if cost is limiting or higher tag retention is needed, VIE tags would also be appropriate for batch tagging (i.e., no individual identification). Additional studies to broaden application of tagging to other small-bodied species would be beneficial.

中文翻译：

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小体型鲦鱼目视植入弹性体、PIT 和 p 芯片标记方法的评估

需要可靠的鱼类标记方法来进行研究（例如，运动、栖息地、丰度），为保护和管理决策提供信息；然而，许多小型鱼类缺乏可靠的标记方法。因此，我们的研究目标是确定存活率、标签保留率（可见植入弹性体 [VIE]、PIT 或光激活微转发器 [“p-Chip”]）和标签对受联邦威胁的阿肯色河 Shiner 短期生长的影响长颈鹿. 我们还研究了使用麻醉来降低鱼类死亡率（即减少处理时间）和提高标记效率。带有 p-Chips 标签的鱼的存活率最高 (87%)，而带有 VIE 标签的鱼的存活率第二高 (67%)。我们的鱼中有 88% 的时间保留了可见的植入弹性体标签，使用 p-Chips 的保留率也很高 (72%)。VIE 标签的位置不会显着影响存活率或保留率。当处理时间减少时，带有 PIT 标签的鱼的存活率从 53% 显着增加到 83%；然而，两种情况下的标签保留率都相对较低（分别为 50% 和 45%）。无论标签类型如何，实验中的大多数标记鱼 (83–100%) 都会增加体重。如果研究或管理目标是用个体识别标记阿肯色河 Shiner 或类似物种，p-Chips 似乎是一个合适的标签。特别是如果成本有限或需要更高的标签保留率，VIE 标签也适用于批量标记（即，无需个人识别）。将标签应用范围扩大到其他小型物种的额外研究将是有益的。