Photo: Federal Agency for Fisheries (Росрыболовства)/FIS

Drone Technology Revolutionizes Salmon Monitoring for VNIRO Scientists

RUSSIAN FEDERATION
Wednesday, December 03, 2025, 06:00 (GMT + 9)

Modern Surveillance Boosts Forecast Accuracy as Russian Far East Salmon Catch Hits 335,500 Tons

Scientists from the All-Russian Research Institute of Fisheries and Oceanography (VNIRO) are successfully integrating drone technology into the scientific monitoring of the salmon run. This modern approach is significantly enhancing the accuracy of fishery forecasts and stock assessments.

The deployment of unmanned aerial systems allows researchers to explore remote river sections and benchmark water bodies that were previously difficult, if not impossible, to access. The high-quality aerial footage gathered serves as the basis for assessing the state of Pacific salmon stocks, enabling the operational regulation of the fishery, and critically, developing catch forecasts for the subsequent fishing year.

Lake Azabachye in Kamchatka Krai

One of the key systematic survey sites is Lake Azabachye in Kamchatka Krai. Kamchatka is the region responsible for the majority of Pacific salmon catches, including pink, chum, and sockeye salmon.

Evgeny Fadeev, PhD, a leading researcher at the Salmon Fish Laboratory at the Kamchatka branch of the VNIRO Russian State Research Center of Oceanography, highlighted the efficiency gains. "We conduct flights to survey salmon spawning grounds. Sockeye salmon spawn in fairly long riverbeds, and modern equipment has enabled us to obtain data in a short period of time," Dr. Fadeev stated.

Further improving this process, VNIRO is actively working to implement artificial intelligence (AI) for the automated analysis of the drone data, a development expected to speed up the analysis process several times over.

This scientific support, provided annually by VNIRO scientists, includes preparing catch forecasts and recommendations for fishermen. The importance of this research was underscored by the recently concluded salmon run in the Far East. Russian fishermen achieved a total catch of 335,500 tons this year. This substantial catch ensures the country maintains its global leadership in Pacific salmon production, a success made possible, in part, by the precise recommendations from industry researchers, according to the Federal Agency for Fisheries.

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