Reducing uncertainties in Baltic herring and sprat abundance estimates: Alternative approach to acoustic analyses

Abstract

Hydroacoustic studies using acoustic measurements combined with biological data obtained from trawl hauls remain a challenging task. The main purpose of the present study is to identify sources of uncertainty and compare the calculation methods for a mixed pelagic fish community of Baltic Sea. Most of the calculation methodologies use conventional statistical borders to split the study area, ignoring the possible natural population distribution areas. We compared the proposed “nearest haul” and the “subdivision average” with the conventional “rectangle average” on the Estonian regular acoustic surveys in the northeast Baltic Sea. The abundance estimates of the target species – European sprat Sprattus sprattus (Linnaeus 1758) and Baltic herring Clupea harengus membras (Linnaeus 1758) – with the “nearest haul” were significantly different from the currently used method, which indicates a strong effect of the allocation method. Our results indicate a need for a large scale comparative study to consider alternative calculation methodologies.

Published in

Proceedings in Marine Technology and Ocean Engineering
2021, volume: 6, pages: 721-727
Title: Maritime Technology and Engineering 5 Volume 2 : Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Maritime Technology and Engineering (MARTECH 2020), November 16-19, 2020, Lisbon, Portugal
Publisher: CRC Press/Balkema

Conference

5th International Conference on Maritime Technology and Engineering (MARTECH 2020), November 16-19, 2020, Lisbon, Portugal

SLU Authors

• Kaljuste, Olavi

  • Department of Aquatic Resources (SLU Aqua), Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

UKÄ Subject classification

Fish and Aquacultural Science

Publication identifier

• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1201/9781003216599-77
• ISBN: 978-0-367-77377-9
• eISBN: 978-1-003-21659-9

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/129799