PANDORA Self-Sampling with UHI, SPFA and MSS presented at MASTS Conference and in Fishing NewsKatie Brigden from UHI presented her latest work at the MASTS Annual Science Conference in Glasgow

3 December 2019

Photo: Katie Brigden / UHI

Katie Brigden is one of PANDORA’s early career scientists and the main focus of her research is on developing robust self-sampling methods for the pelagic fishing fleets of the North Sea and Scottish waters. Katie allies with two other PANDORA partners, the Scottish Pelagic Fishermen’s Association (SPFA) and Marine Scotland Science (MSS), to collect data on board of fishing vessels and train the crews to do so, themselves. This work has been ongoing for over a year now and the Scottish pelagic industry is keen to team up with scientists to collect quality data which can contribute to ecological research and stock assessment.

 In October 2019, Katie presented her self-sampling work in PANDORA at this year’s annual science conference of the Marine Alliance for Science and Technology for Scotland (MASTS). In her talk she discussed the importance of accurate data for effective fisheries management and the increasing opportunities for industry-science data collection initiatives.

Katie’s presentation was then reported in industry news: on Nov 21, 2019 the Fishing News reported about the MASTS conference, stating that Katie’s hands-on cooperation with fishermen shows “the importance of working together to break down stakeholder boundaries is well recognized among key players in Scotland’s fishing industry”. Since inception the self-sampling work has focused on herring, mackerel and blue whiting fisheries,  with seven vessels currently participating in the sampling and more cooperation planned.

(C) Scotting Fishing News

If you are interested in the context and feasibility of industry self-sampling in pelagic fisheries, read more on the website of PANDORA partner SPFA: https://scottishpelagic.co.uk/pelagic-self-sampling/

 To contact Katie about her work at UHI, email to katie.brigden@uhi.ac.uk(katie.brigden"AT"uhi.ac.u)