Sardines
Tamban and tunsoy, including Bali sardinella and related species.
What the map is designed for
A nearshore guide for small-pelagic fishing conditions
Salt Grounds looks for surface-ocean conditions associated with schooling fish such as sardines, anchovies, scads, and mackerels. It does not confirm that a particular species is present or guarantee a catch.
Explore the habitat mapThe intended fish group
Targeting nearshore small-pelagic fish
The current prototype is optimized for the broad behavior of nearshore small-pelagic fish. These fish school in the upper water column and often respond to temperature, productivity, and the places where different water masses meet. The model has not yet been trained against species-by-species catch records.
Anchovies
Dilis and other small schooling anchovies found in coastal waters.
Scads
Galunggong, matangbaka, and related round and big-eyed scads.
Mackerels
Alumahan, hasa-hasa, and related coastal mackerel species.
How the current score is calculated
Three surface-ocean signals contribute to every score
Temperature fronts
Edges between warmer and cooler surface water can concentrate plankton, prey, and feeding activity. Stronger local fronts receive a higher score.
Water temperature
The prototype gives its highest temperature score from 27°C to 29.5°C, with suitability falling outside that range.
Chlorophyll
Chlorophyll is used as an indicator of phytoplankton and potential food-web productivity. The highest score is from 0.2 to 1.0 mg/m³.
Wind is shown as safety context in the map popup. It is not included in the biological habitat score.
Connection to everyday artisanal fishing
Where the map aligns well
Pelagic fishing trips
A survey across 20 Philippine coastal municipalities found that 54% of participating small-scale fishers primarily targeted pelagic species. Their targets included scads, mackerels, sardines, anchovies, and other schooling fish.
- Sardines and anchovies caught with nets or light-assisted gear
- Scads and mackerels moving through productive coastal water
- Mixed small-pelagic catches within municipal waters
Where the map is a weak fit
Reef, bottom, and invertebrate catches
Artisanal fishers also land species whose habitat is shaped by reefs, seafloor type, depth, or other conditions that this model does not measure.
- Grouper, snapper, parrotfish, rabbitfish, and goatfish
- Threadfin bream, slipmouth, and other bottom-associated fish
- Squid, crab, shrimp, shellfish, and inland or farmed species
Reading the colors
Favorable conditions are not confirmed fish
Red and orange show stronger modeled conditions for the selected day. Yellow and turquoise show lower-scoring alternatives. A high score means the measured surface conditions look comparatively favorable; it does not mean fish have been observed there.
Resolution and presentation
The scientific data remain on an approximately 4 km grid
Rounded color regions make the national map easier to read, but a click still returns values from the nearest native data cell. The 500 m shoreline reveal and smooth vector edges improve presentation; they do not add scientific precision.
What is not yet in the model
Daily catch depends on more than satellite conditions
The current score does not yet account for fishing gear, effort, depth, tides, moon phase, currents, payao locations, seasonal closures, or local fisher knowledge. These factors can determine whether a favorable area produces a catch on a particular trip.
What the map can say“Surface conditions look favorable for nearshore small-pelagic habitat.”
What the map cannot say“Sardines or galunggong are confirmed here today.”
The next scientific step
Validate the score with real fishing trips
Dated records of species, catch weight, location, gear, and trip effort would let Salt Grounds test the current assumptions and eventually build species- and gear-specific guidance.
Further reading