2012 Fourth International Conference on Computational Intelligence, Modelling and Simulation

Potential Fishing Zone Estimation by Rough Cluster Predictions

Sharath Jagannathan1, Andrews Samraj2, Maheswari Rajavel1
1
School of Computing Sciences and Engineering, VIT University
India
1
sharathkumar.j@vit.ac.in
1
maheswari.n@vit.ac.in
2
Department of Information Technology, Mahendra Engineering College
India
2
andrewsmalacca@gmail.com

Abstract - The potential fishing zone (PFZ) advisories plays a
vital role in forecasting the spots for fishing. The PFZ
advisories received from Indian National Center for Ocean
Information Services (INCOIS), Hyderabad during November
2003 to February 2011 of Colachel coast was analyzed to
understand the landing spots for fishing. The data had split
into three significant categories of distance. This study reveals
that the depth and the distance of PFZ are directly
proportional until a specific distance. It has an inference in the
maximum distance; the depth is low for pelagic fishes
indicating the life adaption in planktons. Ocean floor
classification with respect to depth has noted that pelagic fishes
live at a certain depth and this correlates to the data analyzed.
The study is used for the benefit of fisherman to deduce
automatically the spot in accordance to the seasons and also
the depth. PFZ advisories help the fisherman in the significant
reduction of search time and fuel cost yields the better catch on
a day.
Keywords-Ecosystems; Socioeconomic; Chlorophyll; Pelagic
fish; fishing community
I. INTRODUCTION
Colachel is a minor Town situated on the west coast of
Kanyakumari District in Tamil Nadu state. The land’s end,
Kanyakumari is only 40 Kilometers from Colachel & 28Km
from Nagercoil on the West coast road. Along the cost in
the south – easterly direction, where the three major seas,
viz. Arabian Sea, Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal meet
Vasco-da-gama called Colachel as “Colachi”[19]. Though
the Colachel coast is situated in the Arabian Sea, it is within
a possible range of influence of both Indian Ocean and Bay
of Bengal. This inshore area is an important productive zone
for pelagic fishes such as the lesser sardines, anchovies,
mackerel, horse mackerel and other quality fishes, which
support a traditional artisanal fishery [6]. Pelagic fishes
occupy the surface waters from the coast to the open ocean.
Pelagic fishes of all sizes have high ecological, economic
and social value [3].
The growth of the fisheries sector, to a very large extent,
is due to the impact of research on the fish farmers, fisher
folk, fisheries planners and managers [5]. India's future
fisheries development plans are aimed at increasing fish
production, improving the welfare of fishing community,
promoting exports and providing food security. [4].
Potential fishing zone (PFZ) is a spot which identifies
the ideal area for fishing. These spots have abundant of
chlorophyll which is necessary for planktons to grow. The
fishes get the feed from planktons and are found in huge
numbers. The spot is identified on basis of the latitude and
longitude information presented by satellite data. Based on
the distance, depth data from the satellite the availability of
fishes in the corresponding depth and the area is identified.
The raw data of PFZ indicates the fishing spot, which is
not validated. We study the knowledge discovery from the
fishing spots of distance and depth relation with respect to
the pelagic fishes. In future there is a possibility to predict a
spot without satellite data.
Many pelagic fish species are known to concentrate at
current boundaries especially in areas with sharp horizontal
temperature gradients. Monitoring the physical, chemical
and biological parameters in space and time is time
consuming and prohibitively expensive. Therefore
utilization of satellite remote sensing technology to monitor
these selected parameters such as sea surface temperature
and phytoplankton pigments (chlorophyll a) [11] is found
very ideal as it provides high receptivity and large spatial
coverage. The Satellite chlorophyll provides an index of
phytoplankton biomass, which is the base of the oceanic
food chain, or food web [13]. Earlier Potential Fishing Zone
(PFZ) forecasts based on Sea Surface Temperature (SST)
data from NOAA_AVHRR (Advanced Very High
Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR)) thermal IR channel were
prepared and disseminated to the fishing community [7],
[10]. In turn, however, satellite data reveal habitat
variability, providing composite image helps in increasing
the efficiency of fishing efforts by identifying
oceanographic features that are often the sites of fish stock
congregation and migration such as temperature fronts,
meanders, eddies, rings and upwelling areas[2]. Potential
Fishing Spots when studied in detail will help the fisherman
and the government to reduce the cost and time taken for
fishing. So identifying a spot which is good for fishing is an
important area for study. Several factors like climate,
habitat, changes etc.. can be analyzed for potential
knowledge and results.

2166-8531/12 $26.00 © 2012 IEEE 82

DOI 10.1109/CIMSim.2012.34
 II. RELAVANT WORKS ON PFZ
Over the global oceans (Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic),
fish schools are identified using remote sensing, combining
sea surface temperature (SST) and chlorophyll. Advanced
Very High Resolution Radiometer-derived SST and Indian
Remote Sensing Satellite-P4 Ocean Color Monitor-derived
chlorophyll concentration were used to generate the
integrated potential fishing zone (IPFZ) forecast over the
east coast of India (16–22 N, 81–89 E)
Nowadays, PFZ forecasts from INCOIS are prepared
with data based on SST and chlorophyll which helps in
locating oceanic features such as ocean temperature,
chlorophyll distribution, etc..[16] Validation of such PFZ
advisories reveals 2-3 fold increase in fish catch along east
coast of India [12]. Several studies were used for analyzing
the coastal region-wise, craft-wise, gear-wise and month-
wise fish production in Tamil Nadu during the year 1992-
93. Craft-wise fish production showed that mechanized
crafts are contributing around 59 percent of total catches.
Among the gears used for fish production, gill net accounted
for 39 per cent followed by trawl net 31 per cent of total fish
catch. Month-wise analysis showed that July, August and
September are the peak period for fishing activity. Region-
wise fish production showed that Palk Bay recorded the
maximum annual growth rate and the west coast has the
lowest. However, production per Kilometer of coastal length
was the higher in the west coast. Therefore, it was suggested
that necessary steps to be taken to involve fishermen
effectively by providing infrastructures needed to them for
fishing, so that the west coast potential is tapped for
increasing the marine fish production [17].
III FISHING ZONE ANALYSIS
The multi-lingual PFZ Advisories are generated by
INCOIS, on every Monday, Wednesday and Friday to about
500 fish landing centers / fishing villages covering the entire
coast line of India under 12 sectors viz. Gujarat,
Maharashtra, Karnataka & Goa, Kerala, South Tamil Nadu,
North Tamil Nadu, South Andhra Pradesh, North Andhra
Pradesh, Orissa & West Bengal, Lakshadweep Islands,
Andaman Islands and Nicobar Islands [1].
In this research work, the data is collected from INCOIS
from 2003 to 2011 and combined as a single data base to
ascertain the patterns in detail. Three broad classifications
on the dataset had been done based on the distance of the
PFZ i.e... Fall under less than 25 Kilometers, 26 to 50
Kilometers and above 50 Kilometers. INCOIS dataset
consists of the details of the PFZ spots identified for a day
and this data is valid for a week. All these data are updated
and thereby we have a large dataset from 2003 to 2011. The
dataset has the following fields Coast (area), direction,
bearing, distance from, distance to, depth from, depth to and
the GPS coordinates for latitude and longitude for
identifying an exact PFZ spot. The dataset for Colachel is
grouped and 165 spots are identified for Colachel.
83
Figure 1: Ocean Floor Classification [18].
The statistical model applied on the dataset in this study is
to find the significance of the relationships in characteristics
of PFZ formation is the t-Test distribution. Average analysis
also has been done for the month wise and day wise data to
have a collective study for the period 2003 to 2011. The
data selected in depth and distance to show a relation
between them.
Table 1 – Ocean Floor Classification of pelagic fishes
Depth in Meters Classification based Depth in Feet
on pelagic fish
0-200m Epipelagic (sunlit) 650ft
200m-1000m Mesopelagic 3300ft
(twilight)
Figure 1 shows the classification of the ocean floor and
the depth at different levels. Epipelagic layer has the photic
or the area where sunlight is present. The chlorophyll
content is more and concentrated at places in this photic
layer, where algae plants and fishes are found in abundance.
Also Figure 1 shows a shelf where the depth is low and
increases to the deepest point. As per studies conducted, it
had noted that the fishes have adjusted to the habitat and
live around the chlorophyll concentrated areas. These areas
form the potential fishing zones as fishes are found in
abundance. Table 1 shows the classification of pelagic fish
as per the sunlight. The Mesopelagic sunlight is not
penetrated deep into the ocean and therefore forms the
twilight region [15].
Potential Fishing Zone (PFZ) advisories generated by
the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information services
(INCOIS) provides information of spots, the latitude,
longitude, bearing, distance and depth. The information for
PFZ is not available everyday as a guideline for the
fisherman. As there are various factors which affect the
information like the cloudy weather [8]. The availability of
data in the website is not adequate during the rainy season
and also the frequency of display is once a week. The data is
collected over the years studied and inferences made so that
it is helpful for the fisherman. Further studies will give exact
PFZ spots without the satellite data, occurrence / abundance
of commercially important pelagic fishes. The usefulness of
PFZ advisories analysis determines the habitat
understanding. For artisanal, motorized and small
mechanized sector fishermen, the analysis is helpful in
obtaining comparatively higher catch per unit effort for the
major pelagic fishes and thereby improving the economy of fuel and in turn boosts profit [14]. The data also gives the
fishing operations. Analysis of data from PFZ and tools distance and depth range and is spaced in intervals of 5. The
shows the relation between the fishes, the distance and the latitude and longitude information is represented in degrees,
depth they survive; such analysis helps the fisherman to minutes and seconds along with direction.
determine a spot for catch without relying heavily on the
INCOIS satellite. IV. RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
This information when used along with a GPS will take A. Study of PFZ Spots from 2003 -2011
the fisherman to a spot and also inform at what depth the
Geographical data location: Colachel, Tamil Nadu.
fishes can be netted, if such information is helpful for the
fisherman to go directly to the spot which saves his time, Temporal data location: 2003 - 2011.

Table 2– Sample data averaged for SE direction in FEB month from 2003-2011
Month- Distance Depth
Year Coastline Direction Bearing From Distance to From Depth To

Feb-05 Colachel SE 121 13.5 18.5 10 15

Feb-06 Colachel SE 137 11 16 20 25

Feb-08 Colachel SE 128 24 29 30 35

Feb-10 Colachel SE 141 20 25 35 40

The data give details of the PFZ spot with latitude and X = data array of depth for the distance 0 - 25 kilometers Y
longitude, also the direction with the distance and depth. = data array of depth for the distance 25 - 50 kilometers
Based on the data collected and formed as rough cluster (The data values is compared for X and Y as per the table 3)
using k-means technique, t-Test results on the rough clusters Alpha = t-Test is tested with Alpha values 0.5, 0.05 and 0.95
had resulted in the depth relationships with respect to Tail = values used are 0, 1 and -1.
distance of PFZ. This was implemented using a Matlab function.
The k-means clustering approach is formed to get these
h = ttest2(x, y, alpha, tail)
multiple groups of available data. The minimal objective
function was taken by calculating objective function to find For table 3, the data for distance is classified into three
the cluster members close to the cluster centre. categories; the corresponding depth is averaged per month
and tabulated for performing the t-Test. The t-Test is done
for the depth between two categories of distance to find the
relationship of the data and its relevant significance.
Table 3 –Clusters for distance and Averaged depth
Where is a chosen distance calculated t-Test t-Test 1 t-Test 2 t-Test 3
Distan 0 – 26- 0 – 51 – 26- 51 –
between a data position and the cluster centre , is a ce 25 50 25 above 50 above
sign of the distance of the n data points from their respective
cluster centres.
t-Test Analysis: Using Matlab, t-test was performed 35 45 35 55 45 55
on clusters shown in Table 3; the t-Test is implemented as 38.3 15 38.3 40 15 40
follows:
10 21.7 10 45 21.7 45
20 45 20 60 45 60
30 40 30 50 40 50
Where 30 20 30 45 20 45
20 35 20 57.5 35 57.5
35 35 35 40 35 40
Depth 40 45 40 40 45 40
The test is performed under the assumption of equal and
unequal population variances. 35 30 35 43.3 30 43.3
30 70 30 80 70 80

84
 40 45 40 65.7 45 65.7 certain depth for the low surface of the ocean floor. The
20 35 20 68 35 68 ocean floor is unpredictable, but fishes adapt with the depth
by living around planktons. Study had been done on depth
38.3 50 38.3 50 50 50 and distance, depth is directly proportional to the distance.
50 42.5 50 63.3 42.5 63.3
Table 4 – t-Test results
38 40 38 70 40 70 Distance 0 to 25 26 to 50 – 0 to 26 –
35 47.5 35 40 47.5 40 based – 26 to 51 and 51 and
35 35 35 50 35 50 Clusters 50 above above
35 40 35 47.5 40 47.5 t-Test 0.1 0.0003 Not
Results significant
t-Test Results: The table 4 indicates that t-Test is In Figure 2 graph has plotted between distance (0 to 25 km)
significant for 0 to 50 kilometers and not significant for and depth. The horizontal axis represents the distance and
distance comparison for 0 to 26 kilometers and 51 kilometer the vertical axis represents the depth. From the Figure 3, the
and above. This can be further inferred that the ocean floor distance to depth is proportional. If distance decreases the
has deepest point after 51 kilometer and this area cannot be depth is also decreases, when distance increases the depth
compared with the distance below 26 kilometer. After 51 also increases. This shows the nature of fishes living as
kilometer the ocean floor classification indicates that the distance increase the habitat changes and is closely
pelagic fishes and chlorophyll concentrated spots are until a populated in the chlorophyll concentrated areas

Figure 2: distance Vs depth for study

Horizontal Axis: Distance Vertical Axis: Depth

In Table 4 and Figure 2 we study the relation between the Table 6 shows the total distance and depth calculation for
distance and depth. The data analysis also proves the summer and winter. The distance in kilometers and depth in
distance and depth is directly proportional and the graph in meters is calculated by taking the average of data for all the
Figure 3 supports the relevance. months and summation of the values. The calculation also
infers that fisherman has to travel longer and fish deeper in
B. Fishing Spot Identification
winter.
Table 5 gives the idea that PFZ spots information is
available more in winter. SE and SW direction is the Table 6 – Distance Vs Depth
preferred direction for fishing. A total of 165 spots had been Season Average Average Depth
studied. As per the study, the potential fishing spots are clusters Distance
found concentrated in the SE direction and also more Summer 2894 Kilometers 3304 ft
number of spots in winter. This indicates that the fisherman
Winter 3447 Kilometers. 4206 ft
visits the PFZ spot more in SE direction in winter
Table 5 – PFZ spots calculation C. Distance calculation of PFZ data for Colachel
Direction SE SW S Total
based Direction Direction Direction Spots Table 7 is used for calculating the distance between two
Clusters PFZ points; the latitude and longitude data from INCOIS
PFZ Spots 45 22 3 70 satellite is measured to find average distance between PFZ
in Summer spots. The distance when measured and studied will reveal
average time taken to travel between PFZ spots
PFZ Spots 67 26 2 95
in Winter
.

85
 Table 7 – Distance between two PFZ points
Serial No. Latitude/Longitude Distance Miles Azimuth Azimuth Depth
1 N ;Latitude 7 54 11.77, 19.023 11.820 Azimuth Azimuth 45 to 50
E Longitude 77 25 20.25 kilomete miles from point from point
(Point 1) rs 1 to point 2 2 to point 1
N Latitude 8 0 31.81, E = 308.11° = 128.09° 35 to 40
Longitude 77 17 10.80
(Point 2)
2 N Latitude 8 0 31.81, E 16.165 10.045 Azimuth Azimuth 35 to 40
Longitude 77 17 10.80 kilomete miles from point from point
(Point 2) rs 1 to point 2 2 to point 1
N Latitude 8 1 21.92, E = 275.50° = 95.48° 45 to 50
Longitude 77 8 24.63
(Point 3)

Given two points of latitude and longitude, the distance is calculated by the formula:

a = sin²(lat/2) + cos(lat1).cos(lat2).sin²(long/2)
Haversine formula: c = 2.atan2(a, (1a))
d = R.c
where R is earth’s radius (mean radius = 6,371km);

Figure 4: Plotting Latitude and Longitude points

Figure 4 is plotted with the latitude and longitude points
from INCOIS, in Google Earth. This plot gives the details of
the distance between the points and also the clusters of spots.
Calculation of the plotted points determines the direction of
fish’s movement or its availability. It will also predict spots
by number of occurrences and catch of fishes, which will be
the scope for future study.
D. Discussion
The ocean seabed is one of the most exciting and
interesting places on earth. The vast majority of the
information we have on the floor of the ocean is newer, as
technology that allows us to study the ocean floor developed
only a few decades ago. Studying the ocean floor is difficult
for multiple reasons. The ocean bottom is completely dark.
Sunlight only penetrates the ocean surface so far. This is
region identified as the depth well suited for the pelagic
fishes. Also from the study we see that the depth is also
proportional to the distance and is significant for the fishes to
grow and are available for catch in few meters of the sunlit
area. If there is no light, the water is very cold – almost
freezing. The trillions of trillions of pounds of water make
the water pressure extremely heavy, which can crush
scientific instruments and makes it impossible for the pelagic
fishes to grow. It is noted that the sunlight penetrated spots
are concentrated with chlorophyll, planktons and ideal
conditions for fishes to grow.
The data are analyzed with respect to the pelagic fish’s
habitat and inferred that the distance is directly proportional
to depth until 50 Kilometers and then decreases along with
the distance. This phenomenon is seen because only the
epipelagic layer is lit with sunlight and is filled with

86
nutrients useful for the planktons to grow. These planktons
in turn are used by the fishes and there by the spot becomes
ideal for fishing. This shows the surface habitat of the
pelagic fishes. Satellite data on PFZ advisories determine the
spot. Based on the advisories and validation done to report
high increase of fish catch and other economic growth
factors, PFZ data is appropriate. The data in the website is
not continuous because of several factors for identifying the
PFZ spots like climate, monsoons and is taken only 3 times
in a week. So study of these data associated with SST and
Chlorophyll will definitely give interesting facts for
improving current situation for fishing.
V. CONCLUSION
PFZ advisories generated from satellite retrieved SST
and Chlorophyll were found to be good indicators of the
availability/abundance of pelagic fishes such as sardines,
mackerel, anchovies, tunas and carangids. These advisories
are found beneficial to artisanal, motorized and small
mechanized sector fishermen engaged in pelagic fishing
activities such as ring seining, purse seining, gill netting etc.
for locating these highly migratory pelagic species. This
reduces the search time, which in turn results in the saving of
valuable fuel and human effort, which yields a higher catch
per unit effort. Fishing spots PFZ availability is more in
winter. Fisherman had to fish deeper and travel more in
winter than summer. PFZ data is available or concentrated
more in the SE direction. In this article the relation between
the distance and the depth of fishing zone has been analyzed.
The historical data also reflect PFZ availability on certain
months of the year, for good catch of fish and stock
availability when studied along with the direction and
distance. The satellite retrieved information provides the
prospective fishing grounds. This helps the fisherman
community to get better catch of fishes and promote their
income. This study will be enhanced to identify the exact
spot without the PFZ satellite data.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The authors acknowledge INCOIS, Hyderabad for
providing support to validate and disseminate the PFZ
forecast technology. The imperative of the study is to create
awareness about the potential use of the PFZ forecast
advisories.
REFERENCES
[1]. INCOIS, Ocean Information Services to guide fishermen about
fishing zones, March 20, (2009), http://news.smashits.com/362976
/Ocean-Information-Services-to-guide-fishermen-about-fishing-
zones.htm
[2]. Fiedler, P.C., and Bernard, H.J. (1987): Tuna aggregation and feeding
near fronts observed in satellite imagery, Cont. Shelf Res., 7, 871-881.
[3]. Hobday A.J.S., Griffiths, T.W. (2009): Pelagic Fishes and Sharks,
Marine climate change in Australia, Impacts and adaptation responses
2009 Report Card page no.1
[4]. James P.B., Alaoarswamy, K., Rao, K.V., Narayana, Muthu M.S.,
Rajagopalan M.S., Alagaraja K. and Mukundan C. (1987): Potential
87
Marine Fishery Resources of India, Seminar on potential Marine
fishery resources, CMFRI special publication.
[5]. Jayashree, B. and Arunachalam S. (2000): Mapping fish research in
India Current Science, VOL. 79, No. 5, p.613-620
[6]. Lazarus and Joel 1979: A Note on the Operational cost and returns of
seasonal “Mixture Madi” operations along Kanyakumari Coast –
Colachel fisherman coast information.
[7]. Nath, N.A., Rao M.V., Reddy, S.R., Das, N.K. & Baral, N.C. (1991):
Application of Satellite derived Sea Surface Temperature for
estimation of fish catch: A pilot study, Indian Journal of Marine
Sciences, 20, 152-154.
[8]. Nayak, S., Solanki, H.U. and Diwedi, R.M., (2003): Utilisation of IRS
P-4 ocean colour data for potential fishing zone- A cost benefit
analysis, Indian Journal of Marine Sciences, vol.32(3), pp244-248
[9]. Silas, E.G. and Pillai, P.P. (1982): Resource of tunas and related
species in the Indian Ocean. Bull. Cent.Mar Fish.Res.Inst., 32, 174 p.
[10]. Solanki, H U, Raman, K. B., Diwedi, R.M. and Narain, A. (1998):
Seasonal trends in fishery resources offGujurat: Salient observations
using NOAA-AVHRR, Ind. J. Mar. Sc, 27, 438-442
[11]. Solanki, H. U., Dwivedi, R. M., Nayak, S., Gulati, D. K., John, M.E.
and Somvanshi,V. S.(2003): Potential fishing zones (PFZ) forecast
using satellite data derived biological and physical processes , Journal
of the Indian Society of Remote Sensing, Volume 31, Number 2, 67-
69, DOI: 10.1007/BF03030773
[12]. Solanki, H.U., Dwivedi, R.M., & Nayak, S.R.(2000):Generation of
composite image using OCM chlorophyll and NOAA AVHRR SST
for locating potential fishing ground, in proceedings PORSEC 2000,
Vol-II(National Institute of Oceanography, Goa), pp(669-672)
[13]. Solanki, H.U., Dwivedi, R.M., Nayak, S.R., Somvanshi, V.S., Gulati,
D.K., and Pattnayak, S.K. (2003): Fishery forecast using OCM
chlorophyll concentration and AVHRR SST: validation results off
Gujarat coast, India International Journal of Remote Sensing, 24,
3691-3699.
[14]. Zainuddin, M., Saitoh, S, and Saitoh, K. (2004): Detection of potential
fishing ground for albacore tuna using synoptic measurements of
ocean color and thermal remote sensing in the northwestern North
Pacific, Geophys. Res. Lett., 31 (20)
[15]. Ocean Floor Classification (79): http://cynthiaj21.hubpages.com/hub/
The-Fascinating-Ocean-Floor.
[16]. P. R. C. Rahul, Sobhan Kumar Sahu, and P. S. Salvekar (July 2004):
Interlacing Ocean Model Simulations and Remotely Sensed
Biophysical Parameters to Identify Integrated Potential Fishing Zones,
IEEE GEOSCIENCE AND REMOTE SENSING LETTERS, VOL. 8,
NO. 4, JULY 2011
[17]. Sathiadhas, (1997), Production and Marketing Management of Marine
Fisheries in India, Daya Publishing House, Delhi.
[18]. Topography and Features of the Ocean Floor source for the figure 2 of
Ocean floor classification, http://www.brighthub.com/engineering/
civil/articles/63495.aspx
[19]. Introduction of Colachel: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kolachal