Establishing nekton biodiversity baseline for estuarine environments in southwestern New Brunswick

The Musquash Estuary Marine Protected Area in southwestern New Brunswick was first protected in 2006 as it was identified as the largest ecologically pristine estuary ecosystem in the Bay of Fundy.

Ten sites within the estuary and three reference sites outside the protected area were sampled through fyke netting. Six of those sites, four inside and two outside the protected area, were also sampled using seine nets. Sites were sampled on a monthly basis, May through October, from 2019 to 2021, resulting in three seasons of data. Sampling occurred over two days and at low tide. The first day, a seine was conducted and the fyke net was deployed. The fyke net was retrieved the second day following two complete tidal cycles. Fish and invertebrates caught in the fyke and seine were measured in length (cm), weight (g), and condition. Condition was measured on a scale from 1 to 3, where 3 indicated good condition, 2 indicated a lesser condition caused by parasites or abrasions, and 1 indicated the individual's condition was so degraded that it may not survive.

This project aims to create a baseline dataset of fish and macroinvertebrates from which to assess any future changes and monitor the chronic impacts of climate change. It is part of Fisheries and Oceans Canada's Coastal Environmental Baseline Program.