Global Fishing Watch Map
The Global Fishing Watch Map is a digital platform for investigating fishing activities worldwide by utilising satellite and AIS data.
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The Global Fishing Watch Map is a digital platform for investigating fishing activities worldwide by utilising satellite and AIS data.
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Was this helpful?
The Global Fishing Watch Map is a digital platform designed to provide visibility into the activities of the global fishing fleet. Using satellite technology and (AIS) data, this tool provides transparency about fishing activities worldwide. The map is created with the intent to assist governments, research institutions, and conservation organizations in monitoring and managing marine resources more effectively.
This platform offers a variety of features to its users, including the ability to track vessel movement in near real-time, view historical data, and analyze fishing effort. Users can explore different layers of data, such as marine protected areas, to understand the impact of fishing on sensitive habitats. The tool has been used to combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing by making the activities of fishing vessels more accessible and transparent to the public and relevant authorities.
Features:
Activity Layers: see the following
*Apparent fishing effort (AIS): filter by Sources (AIS and VMS), Flags (by country) and Gear Types.
*Apparent fishing effort (Regional Vessel monitoring system (VMS): filter by Sources (AIS and VMS) and Flags (by country).
*Vessel presence: filter by Sources (AIS and VMS), Flags (by country) and Vessel Type.
Additional layers: a Layer Library provides a range of additional layers are available including: Bathymetry, Chlorophyll-a concentration, Coral reefs, Encounter events (AIS), Mangroves, Marine ecoregions, Night light detections (VIIRS), Nitrate concentration (NO3), Radar detections (SAR).
Coverage: global but can be limited in some areas.
Data: download Base Layers as data.
Events: select a date and see the following categories of event - Dust and Haze, Manmade, Sea and Lake Ice, Severe Storms, Snow, Volcanoes, Water Color, Wildfires.
Language: limited to English, Spanish, French or Indonesian.
Layers -Detections: filterable Night light detections (VIIRS), filterable Radar vessel detections (SAR)
Layers - Environment: filterable Bathymetry layer.
Layers - Events: Encounter Events locations where two vessels, a carrier and fishing vessel, were within 500 meters for at least 2 hours and traveling at a median speed under 2 knots, while at least 10 km from a coastal anchorage.
Layers - Vessels: search for vessels or add them from the map.
Layers (Reference): EEZs, FAO major fishing areas, Fixed infrastructure e.g. oil rigs, wind farms (SAR, Optical), High seas, Latitude longitude grids, Locations, MPAs (ProtectedSeas), MPAs (WDPA), RFMOs all filterable.
Location search: search by ocean name or MPAs or EEZs.
Measure distance: measure distance between points in kilometres.
Screenshot: download a screenshot of a specific area as a PNG file format.
Sharing: share the workspace state as a link.
Time bar settings: set Activity, Detections, Tracks, Vessel speed, Vessel depth.
Time bar tool: select date ranges of fishing events by day, month or year. Create animations over time and bookmark a time range.
Vessel search: search by Name, IMO, MMSI or call sign.
Zoom tool: zoom in and out on the map.
Registered account features:
Advanced vessel search: search on attributes such as IMO, Call sign, Owner and Flag.
Carrier Vessel Portal: access to the Carrier Vessel Portal.
Data download: downloadable vessel events.
Save workspace: save the state of the workspace.
The example below shows search results for location search term New Zealand filtered for New Zealand Flagged vessels for both AIS and VMS.
Global Fishing Watch is available in the following formats:
Web
API
Email address: a registered account is required for some of the advanced features.
API: a registered account and an API Token
The Global Fishing Watch Map, while useful when monitoring and visualizing maritime activities, does have its set of limitations:
Data Delay: The platform cannot display real-time data due to processing times, leading to potential delays in the information presented.
Data Coverage: Not all regions or vessels may be tracked effectively due to limitations in satellite coverage or non-participation in AIS (Automatic Identification System) broadcasting.
Resource Intensive: Using the platform's advanced features and processing large datasets can require significant computing resources, which may not be accessible to all researchers.
Learning Curve: The complexity of the interface and the vast amount of data available can be overwhelming for new users, requiring time and effort to navigate effectively.
API Rate limits: rates limited to 50,000 daily API requests per day and 1,550,000 per month.
Language: limited to English, Spanish, French and Indonesian.
While the Global Fishing Watch Map provides invaluable insights into maritime activities, it raises several ethical considerations that merit attention:
Privacy and Surveillance: The tool's ability to track and display the location and activities of vessels can raise privacy concerns, particularly in relation to the monitoring of individuals without their explicit consent.
Data Bias and Equity: Given the tool's reliance on AIS data, there might be a bias in favoring the monitoring of vessels equipped with AIS over smaller, local boats that might not use such technology, potentially skewing data and insights.
Misuse of Information: The detailed data available through the platform could be misused, either by authorities to exert excessive control or by malicious actors to target specific vessels.
Impact on Livelihoods: For fishers in regions where fishing is a primary source of income and sustenance, heightened surveillance and potential regulatory repercussions could negatively affect livelihoods.
Ethical Use of Data: The responsibility of using and interpreting the data ethically lies with the users. The platform must ensure that guidelines are in place to prevent the misuse of data which could lead to unintended consequences.
To effectively use Global Fishing Watch Map, especially for beginners or those looking to refine their skills, the following resources are highly recommended:
Official Wiki
Tutorials and Articles
Community and Support
In-application support available.
Independent, international nonprofit organization founded in 2015 through a collaboration between three partners: Oceana, SkyTruth and Google.
Bellingcat Volunteer Team/Unassigned
Accuracy Concerns: The tool's reliance on AIS data means that it is subject to potential inaccuracies or intentional AIS tampering by vessels wishing to avoid detection. (See: Clark, L. (no date) ‘Google’s Global Fishing Watch is using “manipulated data”’, Wired. Available at: (Accessed: 5 May 2024)).
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‘Tutorials - Use Our Technology’ (no date) Global Fishing Watch. Available at: (Accessed: 4 May 2024).
An interactive map to monitor the activity of dark fleets in coastal waters (no date). Available at: (Accessed: 5 May 2024).
Global Fishing Watch Case Study (no date) Google Cloud. Available at: (Accessed: 5 May 2024).‘GlobalFishingWatch/gfwr’ (2024).
Off-radar fishing threatens efforts to preserve stocks, study warns (no date). Available at: (Accessed: 5 May 2024).
Paolo, F.S. et al. (2024) ‘Satellite mapping reveals extensive industrial activity at sea’, Nature, 625(7993), pp. 85–91. Available at: .
Raynor, J. (2024) We used AI and satellite imagery to map ocean activities that take place out of sight, including fishing, shipping and energy development, The Conversation. Available at: (Accessed: 5 May 2024).
Waal, L.W., Thomas Bordeaux, Ethan Doyle, Lotte van de (2024) How a Leaking Barge Became an Oil Spill Disaster Off the Tobago Coast, bellingcat. Available at: (Accessed: 5 May 2024).
A walkthrough of the Global Fishing Watch map (2021). Available at: (Accessed: 5 May 2024).
Global Fishing Watch - United States
