Madrid - The Spanish tuna fleet, one of the most technologically advanced in the world, launches the 'SelecTuna' project, a pioneering initiative worldwide that will allow the deployment of more than 1,500 smart buoys from the Satlink technology in the three oceans in which catches tropical tuna (Atlantic, Pacific and Indian). Its objective is to increase the selectivity of fishing, thus optimizing the captures of species whose exploitation is sustainable and avoiding the capture of the most vulnerable ones.

 

 

This collaboration agreement, signed between the Organization of Associated Producers of Large Freezer Tuna Vessels (OPAGAC) and Satlink, is part of the activities and initiatives of the OPAGAC Production and Marketing Plan for the year 2024, and its purpose is to promote innovation and optimize the technology to refine the discrimination between tropical tuna species, adapting it to the different oceanographic contexts.

 

 

The selective smart buoy, a pioneering development by Satlink, has a double echo sounder system and acoustic technology unique on the market, which provides it with the ability to differentiate between tropical tuna species: on the one hand, skipjack tuna, and, on the other hand, another, the yellowfin and the bigeye. The 'SelecTuna' project will be key to improving discrimination between the latter two, yellowfin and bigeye, thanks to the improvement of the algorithms, contrasted with intensive sampling. This information will allow the Spanish fleet to focus on its target species, favoring the conservation of stocks of sensitive species and increasing their efficiency, by reducing fishing effort and generating considerable savings in time, resources, fuel and carbon footprint.

 

Furthermore, and thanks to the collaboration of the fleet and its field work, the project will allow expanding the collection of information and data on the ground to assess the performance of the buoys in different oceanographic contexts and real operating conditions.

 

 

With the 'SelecTuna' project, Satlink will improve its discrimination technology between tropical tuna species, by collecting and analyzing the echo sounder estimates obtained by the buoys and the data reported by the fleet, as well as its subsequent adaptation, in real time. and in cases where necessary, to the oceanographic and operational conditions of each region. The data collected will also allow the company to contemplate other potential technological developments.

 

'SelecTuna' will also increase knowledge about the biology, behavior and distribution of tropical tuna populations, as well as provide reliable and quality data for the development of abundance indices carried out by different scientific institutions and implemented by Organizations. Regional Fisheries Organizations (ORP), promoting decision-making based on scientific data.