Marta Cendrowska, Mikołaj Adamczyk, Małgorzata Godlewska, Wojciech Puchalski
ABSTRACT. Hydroacoustic techniques that permit detecting fish distribution and estimating fish biomass are often applied in fisheries research. These can also be used either simultaneously or independently to detect and measure submerged macrophytes, which are among the key elements in freshwater ecosystems and can reflect perturbations in them. This paper presents a preliminary interpretation of hydroacoustic measurements in Lake Czarne in Drawieński National Park, northwest Poland, obtained with a split-beam Simrad EK60 echo sounder with a 200 kHz transducer. The data collected were analyzed with the Sonar 5 Pro macrophyte module. Maps of macrophyte cover and height were produced using GIS and interpolation techniques. This research shows that hydroacoustic methods for macrophyte assessment can be an alternative to traditional methods of investigation which are destructive, costly, and time consuming. Hydroacoustics is a as rapid, non-invasive approach that provides data easily for quantification and standardization, which makes it an accurate tool for monitoring submerged vegetation in lakes and reservoirs in accordance with the requirements of the Water Framework Directive and for nature conservation in protected areas.
Keywords: hydroacoustics, submerged vegetation, Drawieński National Park, Lake Czarne, GIS, WFD
Przyjęto po recenzji 3.07.2015 r.