2022 Volume 78 Issue 2 Pages I_325-I_330
The movement of fishing boats with fishing lights has been investigated around the Oki Strait from spring to fall using nighttime light satellite images. Fishing boats were distributed in and around the Oki Strait and along the coast of Honshu. They were distributed east-west along 100 m isobaths. The first branch of the Tsushima Warm Current bypasses the Oki Strait and forms a weak circulation current off the southeast of the Oki Islands. Fishing boats tend to be distributed in the area converged by this circulation current and the tributary of the first branch of the Tsushima Warm Current. Since these areas have the potential to be good fishing grounds where plankton and other organisms tend to accumulate, it is important to understand the characteristics of the current field off the southeast of the Oki Islands.
