Theodore Castro-Santos
Research Ecologist at the Eastern Ecological Science Center's S.O. Conte Anadromous Fish Research Center in Turners Falls, MA
Human activities have caused extensive fragmentation of riverine corridors. Dams, culverts, and other barriers prevent migratory and riverine fishes from accessing key habitats. This is particularly problematic for diadromous fishes like Atlantic salmon and American shad that must transition between fresh- and saltwater habitats in order to complete their life cycles. Swimming performance and behavioral responses to hydraulic conditions (turbulence, velocity, etc.) are major interests, as is development of quantitative methods for identifying and characterizing barriers. This work has broad relevance, not only to stewardship and management of aquatic resources, but also to understanding fundamental aspects of the ecology and evolution of fishes. Some current projects include:
- Sprint-swimming performance of migratory and riverine species
- Effects of turbulence on swimming performance, biomechanics, and behavior
- Modeling fish passage through culverts
- Bioenergetics models of anadromous fish migration
Professional Experience
US Geological Survey (1995-present)
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (1992-1995)
Education and Certifications
PhD Organismic and Evolutionary Biology; University of Massachusetts Amherst (2002)
MS Wildlife Biology Washington State University (1991)
BA Colgate University (1987)
Affiliations and Memberships*
American Fisheries Society
Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology
Science and Products
Migratory behavior of adult sea lamprey and cumulative passage performance through four fishways
Reinforcement and validation of the analyses and conclusions related to fishway evaluation data from Bunt et al.: ‘Performance of fish passage structures at upstream barriers to migration’
Migratory delay leads to reduced passage success of Atlantic salmon smolts at a hydroelectric dam
Ascent ability of brown trout, Salmo trutta, and two Iberian cyprinids − Iberian barbel, Luciobarbus bocagei, and northern straight-mouth nase, Pseudochondrostoma duriense − in a vertical slot fishway
Analysis of brook trout spatial behavior during passage attempts in corrugated culverts using near-infrared illumination video imagery
Brook trout passage performance through culverts
Sprinting performance of two Iberian fish: Luciobarbus bocagei and Pseudochondrostoma duriense in an open channel flume
Accelerometer-derived activity correlates with volitional swimming speed in lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens)
Survival and behavioral effects of exposure to a hydrokinetic turbine on juvenile Atlantic salmon and adult American shad
Passage of native riverine fishes through geometrically different sections of a vertical slot fishway on the Moselle River, Germany
Basin-scale phenology and effects of climate variability on global timing of initial seaward migration of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar)
Posthandling survival and PIT tag retention by alewives—a comparison of gastric and surgical implants
Science and Products
Migratory behavior of adult sea lamprey and cumulative passage performance through four fishways
Reinforcement and validation of the analyses and conclusions related to fishway evaluation data from Bunt et al.: ‘Performance of fish passage structures at upstream barriers to migration’
Migratory delay leads to reduced passage success of Atlantic salmon smolts at a hydroelectric dam
Ascent ability of brown trout, Salmo trutta, and two Iberian cyprinids − Iberian barbel, Luciobarbus bocagei, and northern straight-mouth nase, Pseudochondrostoma duriense − in a vertical slot fishway
Analysis of brook trout spatial behavior during passage attempts in corrugated culverts using near-infrared illumination video imagery
Brook trout passage performance through culverts
Sprinting performance of two Iberian fish: Luciobarbus bocagei and Pseudochondrostoma duriense in an open channel flume
Accelerometer-derived activity correlates with volitional swimming speed in lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens)
Survival and behavioral effects of exposure to a hydrokinetic turbine on juvenile Atlantic salmon and adult American shad
Passage of native riverine fishes through geometrically different sections of a vertical slot fishway on the Moselle River, Germany
Basin-scale phenology and effects of climate variability on global timing of initial seaward migration of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar)
Posthandling survival and PIT tag retention by alewives—a comparison of gastric and surgical implants
*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government