Distribution of Demersal Fish Based on a Combined Acoustic and Trawl Survey during Day and Night in Costal of the South Sea, Korea

The distributions of demersal fish along the coast of the South Sea, Korea, were estimated from a hydroacoustic survey and bottom trawl catches in April of 2015. Acoustic data were collected at 38 kHz, and converted into the nautical area scattering coefficient (NASC, m²/n·mile²) for 0.1 n∙mile along eight transects during day and nighttime. Various demersal fish species were collected and the dominant species comprised no more than half of the catch. The estimated acoustic density of demersal fish compared well with the cumulative catch weight from bottom trawl catches in daytime, but showed a low correlation at nighttime. The NASC of pelagic fish determined for anchovy was correlated with water temperature. The combined hydroacoustic and trawl method can be used to understand the spatial/temporal structure and estimate the density of demersal fish in coastal areas.

음향과 저층 트롤 기법을 이용한 남해 저층 어군의 주·야 밀도분포 조사