Developments in Fisheries Acoustics: Introduction

Introduction to the Developments in Fisheries Acoustics, A Symposium held held in Seattle, 22—26 June 1987. By William A. Karp, Convener and Volume Editor.

Fisheries acoustics is a field which brings together scientists with diverse interests. Fisheries scientists who wish to apply acoustic techniques soon realize that they must learn to work with engineers and physicists, while those who work on technical and theoretical problems in acoustics rapidly become aware of the need to communicate with fisheries scientists who can identify suitable research problems. This mutual dependence establishes the foundation of fisheries acoustics, maintaining a milieu in which biologists, physicists, and engineers cooperate and communication transcends traditional boundaries. Because a fisheries acoustics symposium brings together researchers with such a broad range of interest and experience, it is an especially stimulating event.
The origins of scientific fisheries acoustics can be traced to the development of quantitative techniques for pelagic fish abundance estimation. In recent years there have been improvements in abundance estimation techniques, and increasing emphasis has been placed on the investigation of factors influencing accuracy and precision. In addition, the field has expanded to consider problems in fish behavior, classification, and aquaculture. Important developments in all of these areas were presented and discussed at the International Symposium on Fisheries Acoustics held in Seattle, 22-26 June 1987.