We recently delivered training on the post-processing of Exail SeapiX-R multibeam echosounder data for the Philippines National Fisheries Research and Development Institute (NFRDI) and Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), with support from local SeapiX/Echoview reseller Sea and Land Technologies (Philippines) Inc. (SALT). This 3-day training course, held in Tagaytay City (Philippines), introduced the use of Echoview for SeapiX-R survey data related to the project Biomass Estimation of Small Pelagics in Fisheries Management Areas No. 6 & 9 under the World Bank-funded FishCoRe Project.
Training agenda
The 3-day training course, delivered by Echoview trainer Dr. Toby Jarvis, provided an introduction to the SeapiX-R multibeam echosounder, Echoview software, and a post-processing workflow for detecting and quantifying fish. The attendees learned about the design of the SeapiX-R, how it compares to other multibeam systems, and how it can be used for quantifying fish by building on techniques already developed for single-beam echosounders.
Attendees explored pre-processed SeapiX-R data in Echoview to understand its structure, and learned about each step of the post-processing workflow with hands-on examples in Echoview using example data*. This workflow can be applied in a general sense to any type of echosounder data and comprises six steps: (1) data exploration, (2) data calibration, (3) data cleaning, (4) target detection and tracking, (5) target classification, and (6) target characterization.
*We are grateful to Mike Jech at NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center for kindly providing example data from the Block Island windfarm (see Jech et al. 2023), SALT for example data from Manila Bay, and Exail for technical details about the design and operation of the SeapiX.
Echoview
Echoview Software specializes in active-sonar software and science for turning water-column echosounder data into actionable insights. Our flagship software program, Echoview®, supports data from over 75 active-sonar file formats from 18 manufacturers. Echoview is used in over 70 countries for aquatic ecosystem research, environmental monitoring, biological studies, habitat mapping, and marine spatial planning.
Echoview training and consulting
If you’re working with active sonar and want to process data collected with a single-beam or multibeam echosounder in marine, estuarine or freshwater environments, we can help! Training courses are led by an experienced trainer from Echoview’s in-house science team. Courses can be public or private, and online or in-person anywhere in the world. Or why not ask the Echoview consultancy team to do the processing for you. For further details, please check out the Echoview training page or email info@echoview.com today.
