Coral Reefs Health Monitoring

Marine biologists engaged in the study of coral reefs invest a significant portion of their time in manually processing data obtained from research dives. The objective of this collaboration is to create an image segmentation pipeline that accelerates the analysis of such data. This endeavor aims to assist conservationists and researchers in enhancing their efforts to protect and comprehend these vital ocean ecosystems. Leveraging computer vision for the segmentation of coral reefs in benthic imagery holds the potential to quantify the long-term growth or decline of coral cover within marine protected areas.

Gallery / Benthic Imagery Analysis - Pipeline Overview

Monitoring coral reefs is fundamental for efficient management, with swift reporting being critical for timely guidance. Although underwater photography has significantly enhanced the precision and pace of data gathering, the bottleneck in reporting results persists due to image processing.

Our tools tap on AI and computer vision for increasing the capabilities of coral reef and marine monitoring in examining benthic/seabed features.

– ReefSupport

Coral reefs play a crucial role in maintaining the health of our planet

Coral reefs are incredibly important for several reasons:

• Biodiversity Hotspots: Coral reefs are among the most biodiverse ecosystems on the planet, providing a home for an estimated 25% of all marine species despite covering less than 1% of the ocean floor. They offer habitat, breeding grounds, and shelter for numerous marine organisms, from fish to invertebrates.
• Economic Value: Coral reefs support a vast array of industries and economies worldwide. They are crucial for fisheries, tourism, and coastal protection. Millions of people depend on coral reefs for food, livelihoods, and income through activities such as fishing and tourism.
• Coastal Protection: Coral reefs act as natural barriers that help protect coastal communities from storms, waves, and erosion. They absorb and dissipate wave energy, reducing the impact of storms and protecting shorelines from damage.
• Carbon Cycling and Climate Regulation: Coral reefs play a role in the global carbon cycle by sequestering carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. They also help regulate the Earth’s climate by influencing oceanic and atmospheric circulation patterns.
• Medicinal Resources: Coral reef organisms produce compounds that have potential pharmaceutical applications. These include treatments for cancer, pain, and other diseases. Research into coral reef organisms continues to uncover new compounds with medicinal properties.
• Recreational and Educational Value: Coral reefs attract millions of tourists each year who engage in activities such as snorkeling, diving, and reef exploration. These experiences foster appreciation for marine ecosystems and can contribute to conservation efforts.
• Cultural Importance: Coral reefs hold significant cultural value for many indigenous and coastal communities around the world. They are often central to cultural practices, traditions, and spiritual beliefs, serving as important symbols of identity and connection to the sea.

Overall, coral reefs are not only ecologically significant but also economically, socially, and culturally important. Protecting and preserving coral reefs is essential for the health of marine ecosystems and the well-being of human societies that depend on them.

Conservation concerns

There are several reasons why coral reef conservation is a matter of concern:

• Climate Change: Rising sea temperatures due to climate change lead to coral bleaching, where corals expel the symbiotic algae living in their tissues, causing them to turn white and become more susceptible to disease and mortality. Ocean acidification, another consequence of climate change, can also weaken coral skeletons, making them more vulnerable to damage.
• Pollution: Pollution from land-based sources, such as agricultural runoff, sewage, and marine debris, can smother corals, introduce harmful chemicals, and promote the growth of algae that compete with corals for space. Chemical pollutants can weaken corals’ immune systems and make them more susceptible to disease.
• Overfishing and Destructive Fishing Practices: Overfishing of herbivorous fish species, such as parrotfish and surgeonfish, can disrupt the delicate balance of coral reef ecosystems by allowing algae to overgrow corals. Destructive fishing practices, such as blast fishing and cyanide fishing, directly damage coral reefs and reduce fish populations.
• Coastal Development and Habitat Destruction: Coastal development, including the construction of resorts, ports, and coastal infrastructure, can lead to habitat destruction through dredging, sedimentation, and pollution runoff. Deforestation and land clearing also contribute to sedimentation and nutrient runoff that can harm coral reefs.
• Unsustainable Tourism: Unsustainable tourism practices, such as anchoring on reefs, trampling fragile corals, and overuse of snorkeling and diving sites, can damage coral reefs and disturb marine life. In some cases, the extraction of marine organisms for souvenirs or aquarium trade can also negatively impact coral reef ecosystems.
• Invasive Species: Introduction of non-native species, either intentionally or accidentally, can disrupt coral reef ecosystems by outcompeting native species for resources, preying on native species, or altering habitat structure.
• Lack of Awareness and Governance: Limited public awareness about the importance of coral reefs and inadequate governance and enforcement of conservation measures contribute to continued degradation of coral reef ecosystems.

Addressing these conservation concerns requires concerted efforts at local, national, and international levels, including sustainable management practices, marine protected areas, pollution reduction measures, and climate change mitigation strategies.

Project Scope and Objectives

Our collaboration aims to pioneer the development of an advanced underwater benthic imagery model capable of accurately identifying and localizing various functional groups inhabiting reef ecosystems. This model is designed to be versatile, adaptable to diverse marine regions worldwide.

Initially, our focus is on distinguishing between hard and soft coral species. However, our iterative approach allows for the gradual incorporation of more detailed taxonomic classifications as the system matures and gains sophistication. By laying a robust foundation with this generalized framework, we pave the way for comprehensive reef ecosystem analysis and management.

Challenges in underwater imagery

Computer vision tasks in underwater imagery pose unique challenges that make them particularly difficult. Here are some key reasons:

• Limited Light and Color Variation: Underwater environments typically have limited light penetration, leading to reduced visibility and color distortion. The attenuation of light in water results in diminished contrast and color richness, making it challenging for computer vision models to accurately perceive and differentiate objects.
• Scattering and Absorption: Water causes scattering and absorption of light, which can obscure details and create hazy or blurry images. This phenomenon is exacerbated as the distance from the camera increases, impacting the clarity of objects in the scene. The scattering of light can also cause objects to appear larger or closer than they are.
• Complex Backgrounds: Underwater scenes often feature intricate and dynamic backgrounds, such as coral reefs, plants, and marine life. The complexity of these backgrounds can make it challenging for computer vision models to distinguish between the objects of interest and the surrounding environment.
• Limited Annotated Data: Annotating underwater imagery for training machine learning models is a labor-intensive process. The scarcity of large and well-annotated datasets specific to underwater scenes makes it difficult to train models effectively. Limited training data can lead to challenges in achieving robust generalization.
• Distinctive Visual Artifacts: Underwater imagery may exhibit visual artifacts such as caustics, backscatter, and particulate matter in the water. These artifacts can introduce noise and irregularities, impacting the performance of computer vision algorithms.
• Variable Environmental Conditions: Underwater conditions are highly variable, including changes in water clarity, currents, and turbulence. These variations can affect the quality and consistency of images, making it difficult for models trained on one set of conditions to generalize well across different scenarios.
• Lack of Standardization: Unlike many computer vision tasks on land, there is less standardization in underwater imaging equipment and techniques. Different cameras, lighting setups, and environmental conditions can lead to a wide range of image characteristics, complicating the development of universally applicable models.

Addressing these challenges in underwater computer vision requires specialized techniques, data augmentation strategies, and innovative algorithms tailored to the unique characteristics of underwater imagery. Advances in this field have the potential to contribute significantly to marine biology, environmental monitoring, and underwater exploration.

Developed tools

Open source tools were developed during this project. The system comprises of a set of Machine Learning models of different sizes and accuracy/speed tradeoff that perform instance segmentation of hard and soft corals on underwater imagery.

Gallery / Open Source Instance Segmentation AI Model

Conclusion

Harnessing automated benthic analysis systems holds promise for quantifying the long-term growth or decline of coral cover, offering valuable insights into reef health and dynamics.

Gallery / Benthic Imagery Analysis System by Reef Support