TAGRA 2025

Baited Remote Underwater Video (BRUV) systems have emerged as one of the most effective non-invasive tools for assessing marine biodiversity, detecting species presence, and monitoring fish assemblages across a wide range of habitats. By using bait as a controlled attractant and deploying underwater cameras on fixed frames, BRUVs provide standardized, replicable observations of demersal and pelagic species without disturbing the environment or altering natural community structure. BRUV systems overcome many limitations associated with traditional methods such as trawl sampling, gillnets, and diver-based visual censuses, which are depth-restricted, habitat-destructive, or biased by diver presence. Their ability to operate across depth gradients, including remote, hazardous, or low-visibility areas, has made BRUVs central to contemporary marine monitoring and conservation planning worldwide. The method generates quantitative metrics such as MaxN, species richness, biomass proxies, behavioral interactions, and trophic composition, enabling long-term ecological assessments and impact studies related to marine protected areas, invasive species, fisheries pressure, artificial reefs, and aquaculture operations. Technological improvements, such as high-resolution cameras, and emerging AI-based species recognition have expanded the analytical capabilities of BRUV systems. Despite these advances, certain limitations persist, including variability in bait plume dispersion, current-dependent attraction ranges, reduced detectability of highly mobile or non-scavenging species, and the need for substantial video processing. When paired with complementary tools such as environmental DNA, or diver surveys, BRUVs provide a more accurate and comprehensive picture of marine biodiversity.In Türkiye, BRUVs show potential across diverse marine environments, from the low-visibility Black Sea to the species-rich Mediterranean. They enable effective monitoring of rocky reefs, seagrass beds, artificial habitats, and aquaculture zones, and are particularly valuable for tracking invasive species and evaluating marine protected areas.