Our cross-Channel partnership uses innovative underwater acoustic tracking technology to identify the environmental conditions a range of important marine species need in order to thrive.
The €4.1million FISH INTEL project, supported by €2.8million from the European Regional Development Fund via the Interreg France (Channel) England programme, focuses on a series of sites along the coastlines of southern England, northern France and Belgium.
Through a combination of fish tracking and underwater video surveys, the project will help us understand more about fish movements and the habitats individual species prefer.
We will also contribute to a growing amount of data assessing the impact of fishing, climate change and other human activities – such as the development of offshore renewable energy sites and offshore mariculture – on the Channel/Manche region.
The FISH INTEL project involves research organisations across the UK, France and Belgium who work directly with fishers, regulators and industry representatives in the three countries, with the University of Plymouth being the lead partner.
Across seven sites, we will monitor marine species including European bass, Pollack, Crawfish and Bluefin tuna, which are considered commercially important for the region.
The resulting data about their movements, and the habitats they occupy, will then be shared with other key stakeholders, enforcement bodies and policy makers.
Ultimately, it is hoped the research will enable authorities across the region to implement Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management (EBFM) programmes with the aim of enhancing the condition and water quality in these habitats, as well as enabling activities – such as fishing, civil engineering projects and extract industries – to function in a sustainable way.
We also aim to bring about greater collaboration and communication between a range of different partners with a common interest in the Channel/Manche region.
Video: Sea bass Dicentrarchus labrax. Credit: Olivia Langmead
University staff involved in the FISH INTEL project
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Dr Emma Sheehan
Associate Professor of Marine Ecology (Research)
Principal Investigator
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Dr Sian Rees
Associate Head of School - Research
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Dr Thomas Stamp
Post Doctoral Research Associate
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Amy Cartwright
Project Support Officer
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Professor Martin Attrill
Professor of Marine Ecology
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Dr Benjamin Ciotti
Lecturer in Marine Biology
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Professor Jason Hall-Spencer
Professor of Marine Biology
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Dr Alexander Wilson
Lecturer in Behavioural Ecology
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Dr Martha Hall
Marine Institute Project Manager
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Dr Alice Hall
Post-Doctoral Research Fellow
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Dr Peter Davies
Post-Doctoral Researcher
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Ronan Conlon
Technical Project Support Officer - FISH INTEL
Our partner organisations
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University of Plymouth - Lead Partner
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University of Exeter: THUNNUS UK
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Cefas
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Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority Isles of Scilly
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Marine Conservation Society
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Institut français de recherche pour l’exploitation de la mer (Ifremer)
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France Énergies Marines
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Université de Bretagne Occidentale
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Flanders Marine Institute
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Comite Departmental du Finistere
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LPO
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Comite Regional des Peches Maritimes Normandie