iSnapper – Harte Research Institute

The iSnapper mobile application is a unique opportunity to provide better data that will work in combination with current MRIP survey protocols to provide a supplementary means of rapid in-season (and out of season) catch information that would otherwise be impossible. In addition to catch statistics, this “modern” electronic logbook reporting mechanism will generate data for parameters that are typically difficult to collect (e.g., fish discard rates, depths fished, better effort estimates, and socioeconomic parameters) to optimize a fishery’s full potential from both a harvest and economic perspective. The field of electronically collected and self-reported data certainly faces challenges; however, this app has the ability to overcome many of these obstacles while generating real-time, validated, and usable data for fisheries managers – something needed by everyone to improve access to the Red Snapper fishery.