Conditions for Bluefin Tuna Feeding

The image shows conditions for Bluefin tuna feeding, ranging from unfavourable (blue) to favourable (red) in the Mediterranean Sea as predicted by an ocean ecosystem and fish population model for the week centred on 16 October 2002. The model uses satellite data as well as data from an operational ocean model. The zoom shows the Gulf of Lyon, where schools of juvenile Bluefin tuna (circles) were identified from aerial surveys in the same week. Historical data and simulations are used to validate the modelling approach. It is expected that such products could be used in the future for monitoring of stocks and fisheries.