Research reports

R01/1299 - The implementation and validation of a stereo-video system measuring the length of Southern Bluefin Tuna during transfers

Southern Bluefin Tuna (Thunnus maccoyii) are a highly migratory pelagic species found between latitudes 30° - 50° S. They are long-lived (up to about 40 years), slow growing and late-maturing (8-12 years or older) relative to other tunas (Robins et al., 2000). The species has supported valuable commercial fisheries, fished by Japanese and Australian fleets, and to a lesser extent those of Taiwan, New Zealand, Indonesia and Korea. However, global catches have fallen steadily, from a high of 80,000 tonnes in the early 1960's, due to over exploitation. The fish is sold almost exclusively on the Japanese sashimi and sushi market where it is one of the most valuable fish supplied to the restaurant industry.

In December of 2001 AFMA's Research Committee recommended that funding for a follow up project to AFMA Research Contract Number R00/118 be awarded. The objectives of this new research program were:

1. To refine the construction of an underwater stereo-video system so that it is suitable for counting and measuring the lengths of Southern Bluefin Tuna during transfers.
2. To validate the accuracy and precision of counts and stereo-video measurements of the length of Southern Bluefin Tuna under field conditions.
3. To test the stability and robustness of the configuration of the stereo-video system.
4. To develop a protocol to optimise the number of SBT to be sampled for length frequency during a transfer.

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Type	Title	Size
	R01/1299 Part 1 Includes cover page, table of contents, executive summary	166kb
	R01/1299 Part 2 Introduction, system description, measurement accuracy and precision of the system under controlled and field conditions	1mb
	R01/1299 Part 3 Precision and accuracy of inwater length measurements of live Southern Bluefin Tuna, precision and accuracy effects of video compression on stereo-video image sequences, deployment of the system during transfers	433kb
	R01/1299 Part 4 Appendices 1 to 4	518kb
	R01/1299 - Complete report	1.8mb

Page last updated 12 July, 2005