Context

The ocean is a dynamic and interconnected system, where the movement of marine animals plays a vital role in maintaining ecological balance. Yet, tracking these movements remains a major challenge. This lack of data hampers the ability to manage, protect, and conserve marine biodiversity effectively.  Digital twins —virtual models that mirror real-world systems— are emerging as powerful tools for real-time environmental monitoring and decision-making. While digital twins are increasingly used in marine science, they often overlook a critical component: animal movement.

Objective

To map the movements and distributions of marine life in the North Sea with acoustic telemetry, and use that data to create a digital twin of the area for more ecologically informed decisions in the blue economy sector and marine spatial planning

SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL CONTENT

• Coordination of the tracking efforts on highly migratory species to understand the drivers of inter-basin movements in the North Sea
• Mapping of the movements of species and ocean developments (i.e., oil rigs, windfarms) in the North Sea
• Development of tools and methods to operationalize animal movement in the North Sea as a digital twin

PARTNERS AND FUNDING

This project is led by the Loughs Agency.

This project receives funding from the Sustainable Blue Economy Partnership’s first joint call for research proposals, co-funded by the European Commission.

It also benefits from the financial support of: Marine Institute Ireland, Innovation Fund Denmark, Research Council of Norway, Agence Nationale de la Recherche, Belgian Science Policy Office, Swedish National Space Agency, Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) represented by Project Management Jülich, Forschungszentr um Jülich GmbH, the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality, the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, and the Dutch Research Council.

Photo credit: Tung Nguyen / Pixabay