Sea-scale agent-based simulator of Solea solea in the adriatic sea

Abstract

DISPAS is an agent-based simulator for fish stock assessment developed as a decision making support for the sustainable management of fishery. In this work we enlarge the underlying model of DISPAS allowing it to model and simulate a multi-scale scenario. We retain the currently available spatial scale, able to represent a limited average region of the sea, and we introduce a new spatial macro-scale, able to represent the whole sea. At the macro-scale a single agent represents an area of five square nautical miles and manages groups of fish in different age classes. The interactions among the macro agents permit the exchange of individuals of each class among neighbor areas. A case study regarding the Solea solea (Linnaeus, 1758; Soleidae) stock of the northern Adriatic Sea is used to show the intended approach, taking into account the available data, coming from fishery independent scientific surveys.