A HOST of different hackers from around the globe recently battled it out to help solve a problem set by a Pembrokeshirebased scientist.

Between Friday April 2 2 and Sunday (Apr 24), hackers aided in filling crucial gaps in what we currently know about the state of fisheries around the world.

An army of 2,000 coders gathered in 43 different host cities across six continents for the third annual Fishackathon, solving a problem set by the Welsh ecological consultancy Salacia-Marine, WWF, Young’s Seafood and the US-based Billfish Foundation.

The coders were set the task of inventing a technology which would allow fishermen to reliably gather data about fish length and species from images taken by the on-board cameras, which is a crucial element to take into account when assessing the health of global fish stocks.

Dr Andy Woolmer, Pembrokeshire-based Marine Scientist and founder of Salacia- Marine, said: “A fundamental measurement we need is the length of the fish being caught. This gives us an indication of ages and, together with data on how many fish are being taken from the water, we can use it to derive a range of other important statistics which can help us manage fisheries more sustainably.

“At the moment, this data is available for less than half the global catch. Traditionally we’ve relied on measuring fish by hand at sea, which is time-consuming and expensive.

“If the Fishackathon can come up with a solution to our problem, it has the potential to transform our knowledge of fish stocks around the world.”

The challenge was developed in partnership with fishermen as part of the Cardiff-based EU LIFE+ funded Celtic Seas Partnership, a WWFled project aiming to bring people together to create a more sustainable future for our marine environment.

This challenge is one of nine selected by a global panel of experts. The Fishackathon was established by the US State Department to find ways of overcoming the big technical hurdles facing sustainable fishing.

WWF-UK’s Head of Marine Policy Dr Lyndsey Dodds said: “Fish are a critical part of the global marine ecosystem. Millions of people around the world depend on fish for their livelihoods and more than three billion of us rely on seafood as a major source of protein.

“In 2015, our Living Blue Planet report showed that populations of some marine species around the world, including a number of important fish populations, are in decline.

“WWF is working with the fishing industry to help identify solutions to some of the problems faced in achieving sustainable fisheries.

“By putting this problem forward to the Fishackathon with industry partners, we hope the hackers can help us find a solution that’s not just applicable in the UK but across the world.”

The problem which has been put forward to the Fishackathon builds on the previous winning solution ‘Fish-otron’, which showed how it is possible to make quick and accurate length measurements from images collected by the on-board boat cameras.

However, at the moment there is no technology that can distinguish, reliably, between the different species of commercial fish. What is hoped would be created in this year’s Fishackathon is a piece of tech that can both provide this alongside length measurements of fish.

David Parker, Marine Biologist and Head of Corporate Social Responsibility at Young’s Seafood Limited, said: “As the UK’s leading fish and seafood business, we understand that our planet is precious and that we must respect and help to preserve its natural resources.

“Our ‘Fish for Life’ sustainability programme is the way we seek to improve our impact in everything we do and we’re pleased to be supporting the Fishackathon by giving a speech and offering Young’s food to those taking part at the London event.

“This innovative event will help to generate new ideas and solutions for assessing the health of fish stocks, which is vitally important to us as we believe in doing the right thing for people and the planet, now and for generations to come.”

The winning coders from the Fishackathon will be selected by a panel of judges and announced on Wednesday June 8 to coincide with World Oceans Day.

A total of $10,000 will be up for grabs in prizes, and one team’s creation will be further developed independently with an investment from the US Government.