Scallop Video Survey Work
To analyse the impact of scallop activity within our district we have conducted video surveys using our towed camera systems. All the video collected needed to be processed and analysed.
I was tasked with firstly, editing the video footage into manageable chunks before recording the abundance of main species observed.
I completed this for both 2019 and 2016 video samples giving a total of 173 videos or many hours of footage. In total I counted abundance for 20 different species and a high abundance of individuals.
Here's some example footage collected showing the main differences between heavily, partially and un-dredged areas.
Potting Surveys Restart
The scallop season has now ended which means the potting survey season begins. We have been busy readying the fleets of pots.
They will be strategical placed giving a accurate representation of the district while allowing us to compare results from last year.
So far we have conducted some great days of potting collecting biomemtric data on edible crabs, lobsters and velvet crabs while collecting bye-catch data on everything brought up in the pots.
Rib Work
Alongside days spent on-board NEG III I have assisted the enforcement team on conducting patrols and boardings of the fishing fleet. It's a great opportunity to meet some of the fishermen and get a understanding of their day to day life. Mostly, the fishermen are compliant and friendly although sometimes you they feel we are intruding on their day and sometimes obviously have something to hide.
In a pair, once making aboard the fishing vessel, one officer will begin the paper work while the other checks the entire catch of lobsters and crabs. Any problems are raised with the skipper and then escalated depending on the circumstance.
I enjoy the practical side of this work. Jumping onboard fishing boats and inspecting there catch. It's great to meet some of the fishermen too and chat about there days at sea, their catch or football! In my opinion localise fisheries management really benefits from postitive interactions with the fishermen who's industry we are in place to protect.
Video Editing
For the upcoming boat open day in Whitby I was asked to use my video editing skills to put together a selection of videos to display behind our desk at the Whitby Fish and Ships festival.
Everyone seemed pleased with the result, it gives a good indication of our roles and displays some of the amazing wildlife we get in our oceans. Please see the video below.
Baited Camera Work
We have been conducting static baited camera work to analyse the biodiversity present at various locations.
We have also been trying to identify the abundance of squids within our district. We have noticed a lot of squid mops (eggs) on our pots while conducting surveys so would like to investigate further. I suggested we recorded the presence/absence of squid mops as an addition entry during out potting surveys. This efficient and low time consuming method will give us an indication of abundnaces, distribution and times of year spawning while creating a baseline dataset which can be exploited in future studies.
By using light we have been able to record a high abundance of squid in certain areas of our district. This increases the potential for opening a squid fishery in our district creating a more diverse fishing fleet.
Contract Extension
I am pleased to say the Chief has offered me and extension to my contract which I gladly accepted. I now hold a full time position on-board NEGIII and with N-E-I-F-C-A.
I feels great to know the hard work I am putting in is being recognised and appreciated.
