\nYou can read more about transshipment behaviour from our report or scientific publication.
",
"loitering": "Overview
\n\n - Loitering events are recorded when one vessel shows signs of potential encounters, or meeting another vessel at sea, but there is no second vessel detected.
\n - Loitering events are based on speed and distance from shore.
\n - A loitering event is recorded when a vessel travels at an average speed of less than 2 knots over 20 nautical miles (37.04 kilometers) from shore.
\n - There may be many reasons a loitering event is recorded, so results should be interpreted with caution.
\n
\nCaveats
\n\n - There may be many reasons a vessel slows down away from shore.
\n - Loitering events are indicative, and the vessel may not be meeting any other vessels at the time of the event.
\n - Other events in which a vessel may remain fairly stationary or moving slowly include maintenance, poor weather or waiting for owner instruction.
\n - Loitering events for fishing vessels may be associated with normal fishing behavior, as fishing vessels often move slowly during fishing operations.
\n - Due to the individual definitions of loitering events and encounter events, it is possible for a loitering event to overlap with an encounter event, representing the same activity, or the loitering event may encompass one or more encounter events.
\n - If transmission data is poor, the average location can be inconsistent with the vessel track and the event may appear slightly alongside the track.
\n
",
"fishing": "Overview
\n\n - Global Fishing Watch analyzes AIS data collected from vessels that our research has identified as known or possible fishing vessels, and applies a fishing detection algorithm to determine “apparent fishing activity” based on changes in vessel speed and direction.
\n - Our machine learning model classifies each AIS broadcast data point for these vessels as either apparently fishing or not fishing.
\n - Fishing events use those data points as input and summarize them into one event for easier analysis.
\n - A fishing event is defined where:
\n - Fishing positions appear consecutively and are separated by less than 10 kilometers or 2 hours; and,
\n - Fishing positions within 1 hour and 2 kilometers of another fishing event are grouped together into a single event.
\n
\n \n - The dataset is further restricted by removing fishing events that are brief and fast, as these are less likely to indicate a realistic fishing event. The following short fishing events are removed:
\n - Events less than 20 minutes in duration;
\n - Events comprised of five or fewer fishing positions;
\n - Events that cover distance of less than 0.5 km (for all gears except estimated squid gear);
\n - Events that cover distance of less than 50m (for estimated squid gear); and,
\n - Abnormally fast moving vessel events with an average vessel speed of 10 knots or greater.
\n
\n \n
\nCaveats
\n\n - False positives may appear in the dataset where vessel’s slow down and change direction, but aren’t engaged in fishing activity.
\n - Our machine learning model is better at predicting some types of fishing (e.g. trawling and longlining) compared to other types of fishing that may not have been as present in data used to train the machine learning model.
\n - Most AIS devices fall into one of three “classes”: Class A, Class B, and Class B+. Class A devices broadcast at a stronger power and they broadcast a vessel’s position more frequently. Lower wattage Class B and B+ devices are detected less frequently by satellites, and therefore it may seem there is less fishing activity in areas where they are predominantly used.
\n - In addition to areas with low satellite coverage, areas with a high density of vessel traffic can also limit the number of signals processed, particularly related to Class B (or B+) AIS systems. This may lead to reduced or underestimated vessel activity in the Global Fishing Watch map or data in such areas.
\n
\nLearn more
Learn more about our estimation of apparent fishing effort.",
- "insightsCoverage": "Overview
The coverage metric is an estimate of how well a vessel’s activities outside of port, i.e. where it travelled and what it did, can be captured by the vessel’s AIS data for the time range of interest. A vessel’s AIS coverage metric is critical to interpreting vessel activity information. The higher the coverage percentage, the greater confidence on the accuracy of events listed to represent the vessel’s actual activities. To calculate the coverage metric, all voyages linked to a vessel in the selected time range are segmented into one hour blocks, and the proportion of each hour block a vessel in a voyage has at least one AIS transmission. An ‘N/A’ value could be due to no reported activity for the vessel in the selected time range. This could be of poor coverage, but may also be the result of inactivity e.g. the vessel undergoing maintenance. In these cases, we recommend you check additional information sources and request supporting records from the vessel.
Caveats
- As the AIS coverage metric is calculated based on voyages, eg. the vessel’s activity between port visits, coverage is reflective of the time and AIS reception quality while a vessel is active at sea rather than at port.
- Voyage is defined based on port visits (exit and entry). Any issue detecting port visits for a vessel may result in lower accuracy of the AIS coverage calculation.
- The coverage metric does not distinguish between a lack of activity (non-event) and poor transmission resulting in disability to detect a true event.
Learn more
Learn more about our work on transmission gaps
",
- "insightsFishing": "Overview
Global Fishing Watch (GFW) analyzes and applies a fishing detection algorithm based on AIS data collected from vessels. Each AIS broadcast data point is classified as either “apparently fishing” or not fishing, and further reviewed to determine individual “fishing events”.
Based on the time range of interest, the following two insights are reviewed:
- Any apparent fishing events detected in areas with no known RFMO authorization
- Any apparent fishing events detected in no-take MPAs
Fishing in areas with no known RFMO authorization
GFW indicates any apparent fishing events in areas with no known RFMO authorization compiled from 7 Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (RFMO) lists*.
Caveats
- The insight covers the listed RFMO areas only*.
- The insight does not include national registration or licensing lists.
Fishing in no-take Marine Protected Areas (MPAs)
This insight is presented by cross-referencing any apparent fishing events in the boundaries of no-take MPAs (Source: World Database on Protected Areas ).
Caveats
- Events close to boundary lines may be reported as being inside an MPA boundary. We recommend that you check the vessel track positions on the map alongside adding the MPA layer to confirm exact operation.
- There may be variability in no-take MPA permissions and restrictions based on seasonal closures and gear restrictions.
General caveats
- Due to limited access to national databases, the insights do not consider other unknown authorizations e.g. seasonal closures, fishing authorisation within EEZs.
- All references to activity events (e.g. fishing), should be understood in the context of GFW's algorithms, which are best efforts to determine apparent fishing activity events based on AIS data collected.
- While the insights provide potential events, GFW recommends to visually inspect vessel tracks, always refer to additional information sources, and request records from a vessel to confirm any findings.
* The 7 RFMO lists considered for the authorization insight include:
- Commission for the Conservation of Southern Bluefin Tuna (CCSBT)
- Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC)
- International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT)
- Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC)
- North Pacific Fisheries Commission (NPFC)
- South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (SPRFMO)
- Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC)
Learn more
Learn more about how apparent fishing is estimated through Global Fishing Watch’s technology , and the difference between apparent fishing effort and fishing events. ",
- "insightsFlagsChanges": "Overview
This insight tracks and details when the registry information available on a vessel indicates the vessel has been flagged to more than one unique flag state during the time range of interest, indicating a potential flag change. Adjust the end date of the time bar to present date to show the current vessel flag; Extend time range to track historical changes.
Caveats
- Global Fishing Watch matches vessel identity data with over 40 public registries to validate an individual vessel and enable tracking of identity and activity changes throughout the vessel’s lifetime from construction to scrapping.
- The vessel identity insights rely solely on registry data. The insights do not consider AIS based vessel flag identity.
- The quantity and quality of available registry data vary by flag state, thereby introducing uneven degrees of vessel identity information.
- Conflicts between information sources can occur leading to incorrect identification of vessel flags. This is more common for vessels not listed on public registries and vessels operating under multiple flags within a short time range.
- While every attempt is made to ensure the insight provided is accurate and up-to-date, this cannot be guaranteed, particularly on any changes outside of the monthly data update cycle.
Learn more
Global Fishing Watch works to offset the lack of public registry data by complementing with other data sources and advocating for transparency in regional and national fora. Learn more about:
Vessel identity and characterization ",
- "insightsGaps": "Overview
AIS devices are designed to continually broadcast a vessel’s position to avoid collisions. Thus, when a vessel has an extended gap in AIS transmissions or positions, it can potentially indicate intentional AIS disabling or suspicious behavior.
The AIS off events insight is based on the time range of interest.
Global Fishing Watch records all AIS gap events over six hours, and then applies a set of filters below to identify those gaps we believe to be intentional AIS disabling rather than technical failures. The filter criteria for ‘likely disabling’ are:
- The gap event must be at least 12 hours;
- The gap must start at least 50 nautical miles (nm) from shore;
- The gap must start in an area with a satellite reception quality greater than 10 positions per day;
- The vessel must have at least 14 satellite positions in the 12 hours prior to the gap.
Caveats
- The dataset used to formulate this insight remains in prototype stage, which means it is still under quality assurance processes with possibility of data issues and may not include the most up-to-date data points or changes.
- Gaps outside of the above filter criteria (e.g. activity within 50 nm) are not recognised. Using this AIS off events insight to evaluate activity within 50 nm from shore for example would be uninformative and potentially misleading.
- Gaps shorter than 12 hours are not considered for this insight due to variability of satellite orbit timings.
- Gap events less than 50 nm from shore (inshore) are also not considered, due to differences in satellite and terrestrial AIS with satellite AIS reception generally decreases closer to shore coupled by higher vessel density resulting in signal interference.
- The AIS reception quality estimates used to identify the insights are based on data for 2017- 2019 from Welch et al. (2022) while we work to automate monthly estimates from 2019 until present day.
- While the insight aims to provide ‘likely AIS disabling’ events, the insight is unable to confirm whether the gap events are intentional.
- We recommend referencing additional information sources and request supporting records from the vessel for comprehensive AIS gap events review.
",
- "insightsMOUList": "TOKYO AND/OR PARIS MOU LISTS
Overview
This insight tracks and details when the registry information on a vessel's identity indicates a flag record matching a flag on the Tokyo and/or Paris MOU Black or Grey lists based on your time range of interest. Adjust the end date of the time bar to present date to show the current vessel flag status; Extend time range to track historical changes.
Caveats
- Global Fishing Watch matches vessel identity data with over 40 public registries to validate an individual vessel and enable tracking of identity and activity changes throughout the vessel’s lifetime from construction to scrapping.
- The vessel identity insights rely solely on registry data. The insights do not consider AIS based vessel flag identity.
- The Tokyo and Paris MOU lists have been obtained consistently by GFW since mid-2021, and the insight is based on flag identity on and after 2021, not before.
- The data is maintained on an annual basis.
- While every attempt is made to ensure the insight provided is accurate and up-to-date, this cannot be guaranteed, particularly on any changes outside of the annual data update cycle.
",
- "insightsIUU": "Overview
This insight presents illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) listing status according to the official Regional Fisheries Management Organization (RFMO) IUU vessel lists. A vessel is defined as ‘currently listed’ if they were present on an RFMO IUU vessel list during your time range of interest. To view the vessel’s latest status, please adjust the end date of the timebar to the present date. Vessels that were on the RFMO IUU list in the past and have since been delisted (for example because of a change in ownership, or because the vessel is no longer in service), or have never been listed are indicated as ‘not listed’.
Caveats
- This insight is kept up-to-date periodically since 2017.
- The insight includes data from 13 official RFMO IUU vessel lists* only. Vessels that have a history of suspected or proven IUU or other non-compliance, but have never been listed by the relevant RFMOs will not be flagged here.
- IUU-listed and IUU-engaged vessels tend to change identities, locations, and operations frequently to evade detection. While every attempt is made to ensure the insight provided is accurate and up-to-date, this cannot be guaranteed due to delays, reporting or administrative errors resulting in incorrect display of information at the RFMO and/or in this Global Fishing Watch insight.
- Global Fishing Watch recommends to always refer to additional data sources, including verification of the original data source*, and/or request additional records from a vessel to confirm any findings.
* The 13 RFMO IUU vessel lists considered for this insight include: (Date source: TMT Combined IUU Vessel List )
- Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR)
- Commission for the Conservation of Southern Bluefin Tuna (CCSBT)
- General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM)
- Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC)
- International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT)
- Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC)
- Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organisation (NAFO)
- North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC)
- North Pacific Fisheries Commission (NPFC)
- South East Atlantic Fisheries Organisation (SEAFO)
- South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (SPRFMO)
- Southern Indian Ocean Fisheries Agreement (SIOFA)
- Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC)
"
+ "insightsCoverage": "Overview
The coverage metric is an estimate of how well a vessel’s activities outside of port, i.e. where it travelled and what it did, can be captured by the vessel’s AIS data for the time range of interest. A vessel’s AIS coverage metric is critical to interpreting vessel activity information. The higher the coverage percentage, the greater confidence on the accuracy of events listed to represent the vessel’s actual activities. To calculate the coverage metric, all voyages linked to a vessel in the selected time range are segmented into one hour blocks, and the proportion of each hour block a vessel in a voyage has at least one AIS transmission. An ‘N/A’ value could be due to no reported activity for the vessel in the selected time range. This could be of poor coverage, but may also be the result of inactivity e.g. the vessel undergoing maintenance. In these cases, we recommend you check additional information sources and request supporting records from the vessel.
Caveats
- As the AIS coverage metric is calculated based on voyages, eg. the vessel’s activity between port visits, coverage is reflective of the time and AIS reception quality while a vessel is active at sea rather than at port.
- Voyage is defined based on port visits (exit and entry). Any issue detecting port visits for a vessel may result in lower accuracy of the AIS coverage calculation.
- The coverage metric does not distinguish between a lack of activity (non-event) and poor transmission resulting in disability to detect a true event.
Learn more
Learn more about our work on transmission gaps
",
+ "insightsFishing": "Overview
Global Fishing Watch (GFW) analyzes and applies a fishing detection algorithm based on AIS data collected from vessels. Each AIS broadcast data point is classified as either “apparently fishing” or not fishing, and further reviewed to determine individual “fishing events”.
Based on the time range of interest, the following two insights are reviewed:
- Any apparent fishing events detected in areas with no known RFMO authorization
- Any apparent fishing events detected in no-take MPAs
Fishing in areas with no known RFMO authorization
GFW indicates any apparent fishing events in areas with no known RFMO authorization compiled from 7 Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (RFMO) lists*.
Caveats
- The insight covers the listed RFMO areas only*.
- The insight does not include national registration or licensing lists.
Fishing in no-take Marine Protected Areas (MPAs)
This insight is presented by cross-referencing any apparent fishing events in the boundaries of no-take MPAs (Source: World Database on Protected Areas ).
Caveats
- Events close to boundary lines may be reported as being inside an MPA boundary. We recommend that you check the vessel track positions on the map alongside adding the MPA layer to confirm exact operation.
- There may be variability in no-take MPA permissions and restrictions based on seasonal closures and gear restrictions.
General caveats
- Due to limited access to national databases, the insights do not consider other unknown authorizations e.g. seasonal closures, fishing authorisation within EEZs.
- All references to activity events (e.g. fishing), should be understood in the context of GFW's algorithms, which are best efforts to determine apparent fishing activity events based on AIS data collected.
- While the insights provide potential events, GFW recommends to visually inspect vessel tracks, always refer to additional information sources, and request records from a vessel to confirm any findings.
* The 7 RFMO lists considered for the authorization insight include:
- Commission for the Conservation of Southern Bluefin Tuna (CCSBT)
- Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC)
- International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT)
- Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC)
- North Pacific Fisheries Commission (NPFC)
- South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (SPRFMO)
- Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC)
Learn more
Learn more about how apparent fishing is estimated through Global Fishing Watch’s technology , and the difference between apparent fishing effort and fishing events. ",
+ "insightsFlagsChanges": "Overview
This insight tracks and details when the registry information available on a vessel indicates the vessel has been flagged to more than one unique flag state during the time range of interest, indicating a potential flag change. Adjust the end date of the time bar to present date to show the current vessel flag; Extend time range to track historical changes.
Caveats
- Global Fishing Watch matches vessel identity data with over 40 public registries to validate an individual vessel and enable tracking of identity and activity changes throughout the vessel’s lifetime from construction to scrapping.
- The vessel identity insights rely solely on registry data. The insights do not consider AIS based vessel flag identity.
- The quantity and quality of available registry data vary by flag state, thereby introducing uneven degrees of vessel identity information.
- Conflicts between information sources can occur leading to incorrect identification of vessel flags. This is more common for vessels not listed on public registries and vessels operating under multiple flags within a short time range.
- While every attempt is made to ensure the insight provided is accurate and up-to-date, this cannot be guaranteed, particularly on any changes outside of the monthly data update cycle.
Learn more
Global Fishing Watch works to offset the lack of public registry data by complementing with other data sources and advocating for transparency in regional and national fora. Learn more about:
Vessel identity and characterization ",
+ "insightsGaps": "Overview
AIS devices are designed to continually broadcast a vessel’s position to avoid collisions. Thus, when a vessel has an extended gap in AIS transmissions or positions, it can potentially indicate intentional AIS disabling or suspicious behavior.
The AIS off events insight is based on the time range of interest.
Global Fishing Watch records all AIS gap events over six hours, and then applies a set of filters below to identify those gaps we believe to be intentional AIS disabling rather than technical failures. The filter criteria for ‘likely disabling’ are:
- The gap event must be at least 12 hours;
- The gap must start at least 50 nautical miles (nm) from shore;
- The gap must start in an area with a satellite reception quality greater than 10 positions per day;
- The vessel must have at least 14 satellite positions in the 12 hours prior to the gap.
Caveats
- The dataset used to formulate this insight remains in prototype stage, which means it is still under quality assurance processes with possibility of data issues and may not include the most up-to-date data points or changes.
- Gaps outside of the above filter criteria (e.g. activity within 50 nm) are not recognised. Using this AIS off events insight to evaluate activity within 50 nm from shore for example would be uninformative and potentially misleading.
- Gaps shorter than 12 hours are not considered for this insight due to variability of satellite orbit timings.
- Gap events less than 50 nm from shore (inshore) are also not considered, due to differences in satellite and terrestrial AIS with satellite AIS reception generally decreases closer to shore coupled by higher vessel density resulting in signal interference.
- The AIS reception quality estimates used to identify the insights are based on data for 2017- 2019 from Welch et al. (2022) while we work to automate monthly estimates from 2019 until present day.
- While the insight aims to provide ‘likely AIS disabling’ events, the insight is unable to confirm whether the gap events are intentional.
- We recommend referencing additional information sources and request supporting records from the vessel for comprehensive AIS gap events review.
",
+ "insightsMOUList": "Overview
This insight tracks and details when the registry information on a vessel's identity indicates a flag record matching a flag on the Tokyo and/or Paris MOU Black or Grey lists based on your time range of interest. Adjust the end date of the time bar to present date to show the current vessel flag status; Extend time range to track historical changes.
Caveats
- Global Fishing Watch matches vessel identity data with over 40 public registries to validate an individual vessel and enable tracking of identity and activity changes throughout the vessel’s lifetime from construction to scrapping.
- The vessel identity insights rely solely on registry data. The insights do not consider AIS based vessel flag identity.
- The Tokyo and Paris MOU lists have been obtained consistently by GFW since mid-2021, and the insight is based on flag identity on and after 2021, not before.
- The data is maintained on an annual basis.
- While every attempt is made to ensure the insight provided is accurate and up-to-date, this cannot be guaranteed, particularly on any changes outside of the annual data update cycle.
",
+ "insightsIUU": "Overview
This insight presents illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) listing status according to the official Regional Fisheries Management Organization (RFMO) IUU vessel lists. A vessel is defined as ‘currently listed’ if they were present on an RFMO IUU vessel list during your time range of interest. To view the vessel’s latest status, please adjust the end date of the timebar to the present date. Vessels that were on the RFMO IUU list in the past and have since been delisted (for example because of a change in ownership, or because the vessel is no longer in service), or have never been listed are indicated as ‘not listed’.
Caveats
- This insight is kept up-to-date periodically since 2017.
- The insight includes data from 13 official RFMO IUU vessel lists* only. Vessels that have a history of suspected or proven IUU or other non-compliance, but have never been listed by the relevant RFMOs will not be flagged here.
- IUU-listed and IUU-engaged vessels tend to change identities, locations, and operations frequently to evade detection. While every attempt is made to ensure the insight provided is accurate and up-to-date, this cannot be guaranteed due to delays, reporting or administrative errors resulting in incorrect display of information at the RFMO and/or in this Global Fishing Watch insight.
- Global Fishing Watch recommends to always refer to additional data sources, including verification of the original data source*, and/or request additional records from a vessel to confirm any findings.
* The 13 RFMO IUU vessel lists considered for this insight include: (Date source: TMT Combined IUU Vessel List )
- Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR)
- Commission for the Conservation of Southern Bluefin Tuna (CCSBT)
- General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM)
- Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC)
- International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT)
- Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC)
- Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organisation (NAFO)
- North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC)
- North Pacific Fisheries Commission (NPFC)
- South East Atlantic Fisheries Organisation (SEAFO)
- South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (SPRFMO)
- Southern Indian Ocean Fisheries Agreement (SIOFA)
- Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC)
"
}