There can be regulations concerning the harvesting of marine resources such as scollops, abalone, crayfish/lobster in some countries. The way that these species are harvested are regulated sometimes to “hand harvesting” only. It is therefore in the interests of the fisher to be as efficient as possible with their time and resources.
Using the ROV to Locate High Value Marine Resources
At Down Deep Drones our ROV X-Calibre has been designed in such a hydrodynamic way that it can be towed behind a boat or jet ski, and at high speed, locate the resource through benthic surveys, helping to save the diver valuable time. No more guesswork- but instead clear target areas for the upcoming dive. Abalone divers may find this to be of particular value. Divers who recover resources such as abalone, crayfish, sea urchins, sea cucumber etc spend a lot of time and money looking for areas where the resource is in sufficient quantities. We can scout areas and provide GPS co-ordinates, video, depth and by using the on-board laser scaler, also sizes of the resource. This is valuable for measuring abalone to make sure the diver isn’t wasting time on areas where the resource is undersized. In the case of cray/lobster/crab fishing, not only can we map where the highest densities of the resource are congregated, we can lift the pot up with the ROV and re-set it in very close proximity to where that high density is. That changes the catch rate considerably.
View our range of underwater drones here
Collecting Resources with the ROV
Because bottom time is so valuable for a diver, and bags with abalone can be very heavy, using the ROV to hold the bag, not only allows the diver a free hand, but can also improve catch numbers. At Down Deep Drones, we have an easy way to release the bag, and send it to the surface without the divers assistance.
View our website here
Contact us for details
Locating Lost Equipment with the ROV
Lobster pots and cray pots can be expensive and can also cause frustration when lost. By using the ROV to survey the fishing area, lost pots can be found and retrieved. Other fishers could be very grateful and do occasionally give a small reward for their pots return. Crayfish fishers could have another alternate income stream.
Comments