Tag Archives: Counting Fish
Live Cam May Show True Status of Atlantic Cod Fishery
Atlantic cod, New England’s most iconic fish, has been reported at historic lows for years, but fishermen hope a new video monitoring technique will prove there are more of the fish than federal surveyors believe. Ronnie Borjeson, who has been fishing for more than 40 years, says the federal surveys don’t match up with what fishermen are seeing. “I don’t care if you’re a gillnetter, a hook and line guy, a trawl guy,” he said, “there’s codfish everywhere up there. Everywhere. You can’t get away from them.” Borjeson helped test a video rig designed by researchers at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth that allows them to record fish underwater and count them on the video later. With this rig, scientists can sample a larger area in the same amount of time and hopefully improve federal estimates of how many cod are left. click here to read the story 16:26
Counting Fish – A film by Don Cuddy click here to watch
Counting Fish – The full documentary can be seen here!
New England groundfishermen are in trouble. The annual catch limits are now set so low that many boats remain tied to the dock. But controversy abounds. The fishing industry has expressed no confidence in the NOAA trawl survey that provides the raw data for the stock assessment. But counting fish in the ocean is no easy task. While everyone agrees that more and better data is needed NOAA Fisheries says its resources are already overtaxed. UMass Dartmouth marine scientist Kevin Stokesbury believes he may have found a solution- using cameras to record fish passing through a net that is intentionally left open, allowing them to escape unharmed. For an unvarnished look into the world of commercial fishing and cutting-edge marine research, join the crew of the F/V Justice of New Bedford for this May 2015 research trip to the famed fishing ground of Georges Bank. Watch the full documentary here. 12:51
Interview – “Counting Fish” – Don Cuddy tells how the film came about
“Counting Fish” a new documentary by Don Cuddy, profiles the work of Dr. Kevin Stokesbury, researcher at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, in his efforts to improve the way scientists assess fish stocks. Stokesbury drags a net with an open end, which fish swim through. As the fish pass out of the net, cameras record them. Scientists can then identify fish by their images. This allows for longer tows – as much two hours at a time – and the fish are not killed by the process. Listen to the interview here 08:47
1 fish, 2 fish: Film examines new seafood counting technology
It appears to be an unanswerable question: “How many fish are in the ocean?” But marine research scientist Kevin Stokesbury is searching for that number, and his findings could have far reaching implications for fisherman facing catch limits. Part of Stokesbury’s efforts have been documented in “Counting Fish”, a film shot and produced by Mattapoisett’s Don Cuddy. In the 1990s, Stokesbury developed new video technology that brought big changes to the scallop industry. The methods showed that scallops were being undercounted with the old methods, drastically increasing catch limits for New Bedford fishermen. Read the rest here 08:01
‘Counting Fish’ takes a closer look at UMass Dartmouth team’s fishing industry research
Gentle persuasion might best describe a new 50-minute documentary on fisheries research going on at the UMass Dartmouth School for Marine Science and Technology. Don Cuddy, program director for the Center for Sustainable Fisheries and a Mattapoisett resident, provides the narration, taking the viewer aboard the fishing vessel Liberty in May of 2015 to observe fish survey work. There, one sees footage from eight days at sea, culled from seven hours, of Dr. Kevin Stokesbury of SMAST. He is the researcher who developed the “drop camera” for counting scallops on the sea floor, exposing faulty science, and helped create the highly profitable scallop industry known today. Read the rest here 07:49
Counting Fish – A Film by Don Cuddy
New England groundfishermen are in trouble, with catch limits set so low that many boats remain tied to the dock. But the industry has little confidence in the NOAA survey that provides the raw data used for the stock assessment. Accurately counting fish populations in the ocean is a daunting task however and everyone agrees on the need for better science. SMAST researcher Kevin Stokesbury may have found a solution. Read the rest here 08:10
