Target strength estimation of black porgy Acanthopagrus schlegeli using acoustic measurements and a scattering model

ABSTRACT:   Black porgy are hatched and released in marine ranching areas in Japan, Korea and Taiwan to maintain fisheries resources in coastal areas. If acoustic methods are used for field surveys, target strength ( TS ) information on the species is needed to convert acoustic data to biomass density. Target strength of black porgy ( Acanthopagrus schlegeli ) 15.5–32.9 cm fork length (nine individuals) was measured at 38 and 120 kHz (split beam) by ex situ measurements (cage and fishhook methods) of living fish, a tethered method with shock-frozen fish, and an acoustic scattering model, the Kirchhoff ray mode (KRM) model based on fish morphology. The ex situ TS -to-fork length ( FL , cm) relationships were TS _38kHz = 20log₁₀ FL  − 64.6 ( r  = 0.77) and TS _120kHz = 20log₁₀ FL  − 65.2 ( r  = 0.70). The values for the KRM model were TS _38kHz = 20log₁₀ FL  − 64.8 ( r  = 0.88) and TS _120kHz = 20log₁₀ FL  − 65.4 ( r  = 0.80). The agreement between the ex situ measurements and the KRM model for the mean TS was very good. In contrast, the results for the tethered method ( TS _38kHz = 20log₁₀ FL  − 69.3 [ r  = 0.42]) differed markedly from the other two methods, perhaps because of the effects of the shock-freezing procedure in air. The results of the ex situ measurements and scattering model provide basic information for studying TS and conducting acoustic surveys of black porgy, even though the tethered method must be modified.