News & Events

Smith-Root Sampling Equipment on the Cutting Edge of eDNA Research

Two new peer-reviewed studies published in 2026 demonstrate that Smith-Root’s environmental DNA (eDNA) sampling technology is at the forefront of aquatic species monitoring, delivering reliable, field-tested performance across diverse research applications. In the first, a prototype Smith-Root eDNA Autosampler autonomously tracked the migrations of adult Pacific salmon through Seattle’s Lake Washington Ship Canal, capturing behavioral patterns including a striking 23-day delay in Chinook migration. In the second, Smith-Root’s self-preserving filter housing was put through…

Smith-Root Partners with National Labs to Advance eDNA Robot for Aquatic Monitoring

Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have entered a cooperative research and development agreement with Smith-Root, Inc. to commercialize the eDNA-bot — an autonomous platform for real-time environmental DNA biomonitoring. The collaboration unites ORNL's expertise in molecular ecology and advanced manufacturing with PNNL's marine systems research and Smith-Root's established presence in ecological sampling instrumentation. By continuously collecting and analyzing water samples in situ, the eDNA-bot offers a non-invasive…

Smith-Root eDNA equipment used by WDFW for freshwater biodiversity mapping

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) is using advanced environmental DNA (eDNA) sampling technology from Smith-Root to map freshwater biodiversity across rivers throughout Washington State. By pairing Smith-Root’s reliable, field-ready eDNA sampling equipment with cutting-edge molecular analysis, WDFW scientists are able to detect fish and other aquatic species with unprecedented efficiency and precision—often without ever seeing the organisms themselves. This approach allows comprehensive, scalable monitoring of entire river systems, improving conservation…

Service Announcement: End of Repair Support for Smith-Root 9.0 GPP Electrofisher

We would like to share an important update regarding the lifecycle of the 9.0 GPP Electrofisher. At the end of 2026, the 9.0 GPP Electrofisher will officially transition to retirement status. This means that the 9.0 GPP will no longer be eligible for repair or service from Smith-Root after December 31, 2026. 9.0 GPP owners should evaluate current equipment condition and future project needs. We are available to help with scheduling repairs or planning a transition to the current generation of Smith-Root electrofishing equipment with improved serviceability and long-term support. We…

Smith-Root eDNA Autosampler tested in new USGS READI-Net study

Environmental DNA (eDNA) is biological material shed by all animals into their habitats during the processes of their daily lives. Scientists and resource managers are now using eDNA to detect the presence of important species in a specified area, all from simple water samples. A new study published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology illustrates how eDNA sampling robots can be used to help detect invasive fish, native trout, and rare freshwater mussel species. The authors found that the sampling robot allowed them to rapidly detect changes in target-species eDNA…

Video: “Restoring Native Fish”

Restoring native fish in creeks and rivers in the Grand Canyon is a top priority for National Park Service Management and the National Park Fisheries program. Native fish that are found in the Grand Canyon, like the humpback chub, have become endangered for a multitude of reasons, most notably the introduction of non-native brown trout. Fisheries biologists have chosen to use Smith-Root LR-20B backpack electrofishers to monitor and assess fish populations and also remove non-native trout that live in streams and creeks in the Grand Canyon. During the initial year of the Trout Reduction…

Video: “Innovative Electrofishing Equipment: Data, Mapping, & Reporting Made Simple”

Smith-Root's Patrick Cooney presents "Innovative Electrofishing Equipment: Data, Mapping, & Reporting Made Simple" for the Pacific Northwest Aquatic Monitoring Partnership's 2022 Emerging Technologies Information Sessions held November 14-16, 2022.

eDNA Backpack Selected as Best Sampling Method for Freshwater Fish Detection

A new study, conducted by the Cawthron Institute, aimed to create a streamlined protocol for eDNA-based assessment of freshwater fish biodiversity in New Zealand. The report released this week details their systematic eDNA methods development process. “The key to introducing a new protocol for monitoring New Zealand fish communities is identifying a method that, when compared with the standardized netting and electric fishing methods, is as effective, can be applied to a wide range of waterways, and is more economical.” They compared multiple eDNA capture methods, two of…

GPP Retirement Party

In 1981, Smith-Root announced in the American Fisheries Society Fisheries Bulletin the very first model of the Generator Powered Pulsator, or more commonly called the GPP. It is with both sadness and excitement that we announce the retirement of the amazing GPPs. Over the last 38 years, GPP electrofishers provided you with the capability and confidence to conduct your critically important aquatic resource management and conservation research. Subsequently, we anticipate that many of you will continue to use GPP electrofishers for years to come because of the quality of craftsmanship…

Smith-Root Designs Solar-Powered Electric Barrier to Preserve Critically Endangered Mudfish Habitat in New Zealand

The Canterbury Regional Council recently completed construction on the first pulsed DC electrical barrier in New Zealand. The electrical barrier is designed to deter upstream movement of Brown Trout from the Hororata River into a tributary that contains one of the largest populations of the Canterbury Mudfish, a native fish that has a conservation status of Threatened (Nationally Critical) under the New Zealand Threat Classification System. The Canterbury mudfish (Neochanna burrowsius) is native to New Zealand and, as the name implies, is endemic to the Canterbury Plain south of…

Certifying Sapporo Salmon Scientists

Leading fish scientists and managers from Sapporo, Japan traveled to Smith-Root’s headquarters for a private Electrofishing Certification and Safety Course. Patrick Cooney, Director of Electrofishing Science, worked with a translator to stress the three important aspects of electrofishing: fish health, crew safety, and meeting scientific objectives.

Electrofishing Certification Field Day

Electrofishing Certification Course, by the numbers: 17 fisheries professionals received certification 6 States of residence 10 entities (Represented by Federal, State, County, City, Tribal, Watershed Council, and Private Consulting Firm) 4 backpack electrofishers (Apex, LR-24, LR-20B, Model 12) 1/4 mile electrofishing transect 30 Hz, 12% Duty Cycle, 300 Volts 8,488 Seconds of Effort >600 fish (sculpin, stickleback, minnow) 3 blacktail deer (mom and two fawns) visited us 6 Cedar Waxwing birds ate the aquatic insect hatch as we electrofished 2 days of awesomeness!

Saving the Canterbury Mudfish

Five species of endemic mudfish are found in New Zealand, and they are all threatened or endangered. The fish have a unique life history that allow them to live for months at a time burrowed into the stream bed while they wait for rains to fill the slow meandering streams they occupy. The problem they face is those same habitats they need for survival are also heavily used for farming practices. Additionally, the fish face pressures from non-native sport fish encroaching on the limited habitats they have left and preying on mudfish. Conservation agencies and land owners in New Zealand…

Astoria Sea Lion Deterrence Update

The Port of Astoria has experienced increasing numbers of California sea lions (Zalophus californianus) hauling out on its docks. The sea lions, likely attracted to returning salmon and smelt runs in the Columbia River, completely take over the "P" dock of the East Mooring Basin, preventing small craft from mooring at the dock. Other docks in the East Mooring Basin have been damaged and destroyed by the sea lions. The Port has suffered more than $2 million in damages to its facilities, and is unable to collect mooring fees for most of the year at the "P" dock. In…

Sacramento Electrofishing Training

The 7 year drought in California has come to an end. Despite near record precipitation, Southern California still has a huge need to import large volumes of water from Northern California. Several government agencies and private companies are responsible for not only transferring water in large canals to Southern California, but they are also responsible for monitoring the impact that the water transfers have on fish. One of the most valuable tools scientists have to evaluate these impacts to fish is with Electrofishing equipment, especially Electrofishing boats. For the second time in…

New Fish Guidance System Commissioned in Italy

In December 2016, Smith-Root commissioned a downstream fish guidance system at the Franciolini Power Plant, a run-of-the-river hydropower facility on Fiume Ecino in the Province of Ancona, Italy. ENEL SpA operates the power plant and retained Smith-Root to direct downstream-migrating trout and barbel to a spillway gate rather than the power headrace gates. With assistance from Smith-Root’s partner in Italy, Aquaprogram s.r.l., a design was developed that featured a low and variable voltage pulsed DC field enabled by a pair of vertical electrode arrays. The pulsed DC field created by…

Smith-Root Assesses Salmon Barotrauma During Pier Demolition

On the weekends of October 15th and 29th 2016, Smith-Root partnered with Environmental Science Associates (ESA) to provide expertise in barotrauma assessment in 1,200 juvenile Chinook Salmon exposed to the demolition of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge Pier E4 and E5. Having conducted numerous barotrauma studies previously, Dr. Jackson Gross and Alecia Hunter of Smith-Root represented one of three necropsy specialist teams who oversaw fish health assessment of 600 fish on each of the two demolition days. The team was also visited by the History Channel camera crew on the final…

Evaluating New Electro-immobilization Settings to Enhance Fish Welfare

Applying electricity to water to immobilize fish and other aquatic organisms (i.e., electrofishing) has been carried out for well over a century; however, there remains a significant amount of knowledge to be learned. Electrofishing science is a dynamic, interdisciplinary field that at minimum comprises physics, engineering, biology, and physiology. In practice, the effectiveness of electrofishing is further complicated by a variety of compounding factors: Environmental water temperature, water conductivity, habitat, etc. Biological fish species and size, lipid content, behavior, etc.…

Smith-Root Helps to Understand Why Steelhead Aren’t Surviving in Puget Sound

Each spring, juvenile steelhead exit their natal rivers and move into the Puget Sound as part of their seaward migration toward the North Pacific Ocean. Once in the salt water, these young fish migrate rapidly through the inland waters of Washington State, some of them traveling hundreds of miles in a matter of weeks as they seek their offshore foraging grounds. Unfortunately, steelhead in the Puget Sound region have experienced a long term decline in survival during this critical outmigration period since the mid 1980s, a trend that has puzzled fisheries scientists for years. This…

Invasive Carp Barrier Constructed in Southwest Minnesota