Press release
Implementation of new fish and shellfish monitoring measures in offshore wind farms
Ailes Marines, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Iberdrola, is assisting France Energies Marines in the implementation of fisheries resource monitoring at the offshore wind farm off the coast of Saint-Brieuc Bay.
January
How do fish and shellfish frequent offshore wind farms?
As of 2022, 16 acoustic telemetry devices allowing innovative monitoring of fish have been installed within the park.
This approach is part of the European research projects FISH INTEL and FISHOWF, and monitoring measures undertaken by Ailes Marines, beyond the regulatory requirements related to the administrative authorizations granted for the construction and operation of the park
Unprecedented research in offshore wind farms
France Energies Marines and its partners Ifremer and the Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle have implanted or fixed acoustic markers (small transmitters) on species endemic to the area(brown and curly skate, spotted dogfish, small and large dogfish, porbeagle shark and spider crab). These markers emit acoustic signals at regular intervals that are passively detected by the network of 16 fixed receivers installed within the offshore wind farm. The signal is identified and recorded by a receiver when the fish or crustacean passes near the device. The latter transmits information from Saint-Brieuc, on the habitat use and site fidelity of the tagged individuals, but also on their movements between the different sites.

Sea bass and blue sharks monitored in the Mediterranean
A total of 163 individuals have been tagged in the framework of the FISHOWF project since the program was set up last spring. However, this monitoring is also based on the hundreds of individuals of species of commercial importance for the region, which have been tagged within the framework of the European FISH INTEL project(sea bass, pollack, lobster and bluefin tuna).
These data will be shared with key project stakeholders, local and regional fisheries committees as part of their ecosystem-based fisheries management. The data collected will also help identify important habitats in these high-stakes areas and better assess the potential effects of the parks on fish and shellfish populations.
The Ceres 3 vessel will collect data from the 16 acoustic telemetry devices installed in the Saint-Brieuc wind farm between mid-January and mid-February.
All informations concerning the Saint-Brieuc offshore wind farm project developed by Ailes Marines are available on the website www.ailes-marines.bzh
You can follow Ailes Marines news on twitter @AilesMarines

About Ailes Marines
- 75 km2 in area
- 62 Siemens Gamesa SG 8.0-167 DD 8 MW wind turbines
- 496 MW of installed capacity
- 1,820 GWh/year of production, i.e. the annual electricity consumption of 835,000 inhabitants (including heating)
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