A Machine Learning Approach to Determine Oyster Vessel Behavior

A support vector machine (SVM) classifier was designed to replace a previous classifier which predicted oyster vessel behavior in the public oyster grounds of Louisiana. The SVM classifier predicts vessel behavior (docked, poling, fishing, or traveling) based on each vessel’s speed and either net speed or movement angle. The data from these vessels was recorded by a Vessel Monitoring System (VMS), and stored in a PostgreSQL database. The SVM classifier was written in Python, using the scikit-learn library, and was trained by using predictions from the previous classifier. Several validation and parameter optimization techniques were used to improve the SVM classifier’s accuracy. The previous classifier could classify about 93% of points from July 2013 to August 2014, but the SVM classifier can classify about 99.7% of those points. This new classifier can easily be expanded with additional features to further improve its predictive capabilities

The “Challenge of Depletion: Why the Oyster Fishery is not Self-Regulating

The possibility that the economics of the oyster fishery impose a self-limitation on overharvesting has been proffered on occasion. The inefficiency of harvesting by the fishery has been evaluated and estimates of the exploitation rate permissible under conditions of maximum sustainable yield have been obtained in previous studies. The question becomes to what extent does the inefficiency of harvest interact with the economics of the fishery to compromise ready detection of overfishing? This study explores the possibility that the constraint of economics on the fishery occurs at oyster exploitation rates that are higher than maximum sustainable yield, leading ineluctably to overfishing if unconstrained and to the appearance of unduly limited fishing if properly constrained. A model is developed that simulates oyster harvesting by dredging. This model tracks vessel behavior and fishery performance in economic terms (CPUE) under varying stock densities and dredge efficiencies. Simulation results show that stock density and on-deck culling speed have the strongest effect on time required, profitability, and effectiveness of harvest, whereas dredge efficiency has a lesser influence. Evaluation of simulations shows that overfishing occurs at a stock density that provides near-optimal economic returns. The oyster fishery does not perceive a decline in the stock under sustainable conditions, as the on-deck processing capacity enables the catch rate to remain relatively stable until the stock declines well below sustainable levels. The consequence of setting fishing regulations such that a decline in catch is perceived is to assure routine and substantive overfishing, thereby creating a potential conflict between apparent and real sustainability. This conflict may explain the inability of state regulatory authorities to impose limitations consistent with long-term resource stability. The perception that a decline in the rate of catch should be observed under standard effort-based regulatory controls is a principal challenge that must be overcome if sustainability is to become normative in the U.S. oyster fishery

Generic nuclear safety issues : methods of analysis

"Prepared for: Nuclear Safety Analysis Center."Includes bibliographical references (leaves 223-231

2017 Texas Bays and Estuaries Meeting

Program for the 2017 Texas Bays and Estuaries Meeting held in Port Aransas, Texas, April 12-13, 2017.Coastal Bend Bays & Estuaries Program, Coastal Bend Bays Foundation, The University of Texas Marine Science Institute, Sea Grant Texas at Texas A&M University, Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies, and Mission Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve.Marine Scienc

2023 SOARS Conference Program

Program for the 2023 Showcase of Osprey Advancements in Research and Scholarship (SOARS

Virginia Institute of Marine Science 1988-90 Biennial Report

https://scholarworks.wm.edu/vimsannualrpt/1025/thumbnail.jp

Activities of the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory During Fiscal Year 1976-77: A Summary Report

Annual report of the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory for fiscal year 1976-1977

Virginia Institute of Marine Science Forty-Seventh Annual Report (1988)

For the period ending June 30, 1988.https://scholarworks.wm.edu/vimsannualrpt/1024/thumbnail.jp

Site selection for biogenic reef restoration in offshore environments: The Natura 2000 area Borkum Reef Ground as a case study for native oyster restoration

1. According to the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive (2008/56/EC), marine protected areas (MPA) should contribute to a good environmental status of the Europeans seas. Measures maintaining or restoring a favourable conservation status of protected species and habitats are mandatory according to the EU Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC). 2. Identification of suitable sites for ecological restoration measures within MPAs is a crucial step towards successful conservation and sustainable MPA management. In terms of species restoration, it is important to restore the respective species with the best possible environment for growth, survival, fitness, and successful recruitment. 3. This study provides a comprehensive list of site-selection criteria for ecological species restoration. Three general categories were chosen: (1) ecological history: evidence for the historical distribution; (2) feasibility of restoration: regulating framework and logistics; and (3) environmental conditions: quality of abiotic and biotic factors. A total of 16 site-selection criteria were identified and applied to biogenic reef restoration, namely for reefs of the native European oyster Ostrea edulis, in the German Bight. 4. The Natura 2000 area Borkum Reef Ground was identified as a suitable site for oyster restoration. It is one of three MPAs in the German Exclusive Economic Zone of the North Sea, which have been declared as Nature Conservation Areas according to national legislation. The conservation objectives include maintenance or, if necessary, restoration of the habitat type ‘reefs’. As a reef-building species, the European oyster O. edulis is of particular importance for this habitat type in terms of nature conservation

Virginia Institute of Marine Science Forty-Second Annual Report 1983

For the period ending June 30, 1983.https://scholarworks.wm.edu/vimsannualrpt/1019/thumbnail.jp