NOVEL AQUATIC BIODIVERSITY MONITORING ROBOT
Introduction
Aquaculture systems depend on stable and healthy aquatic ecosystems, yet monitoring water quality and biological communities remains challenging. Conventional monitoring approaches are often time-consuming, costly and largely reactive, making it difficult to detect rapid changes or provide early warnings of deteriorating conditions. Aquatic biodiversity plays an important role in aquaculture ecosystem functioning. Fish ponds with high plankton diversity tend to have better water quality, and show better animal health, and higher yields (Kumar et al., 2020, Lemonnier et al., 2017). Different plankton groups peak at different times, so greater biodiversity provides a more continuous supply of nutritious natural live feed and reduces dependence on artificial feeds.
Our solution
We are developing an autonomous robotic platform that can operate across a wide range of aquatic environments. The system combines advanced environmental sensors, automated biodiversity monitoring and AI-based analysis to provide real-time insight into ecosystem health and enable long-term monitoring of aquatic biodiversity. Off-the-shelf sensors are integrated into the robot.
The robotic platform additionally incorporates several novel monitoring approaches. The robot is equipped with a 3D camera for fish detection and identification. A dedicated plankton module uses a specially designed optical system to detect and classify zooplankton. We also integrate "living sensors" in separate modules, using organisms such as Daphnia spp. and various bivalves as bioindicators of water quality and pollution.
A key advantage of the system is its ability to monitor both vertically and horizontally. The sensor platform can move up and down the water column to gather measurements at different depths (Figure 1). The entire robot can also relocate autonomously to cover larger areas or multiple sites as needed (Figure 2).
By integrating robotics, AI, automated biodiversity assessment and living sensors, our approach aims to move aquaculture monitoring from periodic, reactive sampling towards continuous and proactive ecosystem surveillance. Such capabilities could support more timely management interventions, improve understanding of ecosystem dynamics and ultimately contribute to more resilient and sustainable aquaculture production.
Figure 1
Figure 2
Acknowledgments
This work in being carried out with the project, BioDiMoBot, funded by the European Union HORIZON.2.6 under Grant agreement ID: 101181363.
References
Kumar, J. Y., Reddy, S. J., & Suguna, T. (2020). Role of plankton in aquaculture. International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences, 9(9), 2848-2851.
Lemonnier, H., Hochard, S., Nakagawa, K., Courties, C., & Rodier, M. (2017). Response of phytoplankton to organic enrichment and shrimp activity in tropical aquaculture ponds: a mesocosm study. Aquatic Microbial Ecology, 80, 105-122.