"Traditional GIS tools and methods struggle with such large volumes of data, and can't provide visualization of the temporal dimension. Eonfusion offers the quickest, easiest and most effective solution to viewing large volumes of data with time."
- Dr Hugh Pederson, Tasmanian Aquaculture and Fisheries Institute.
Researchers at the Tasmanian Aquaculture and Fisheries Institute (Hobart, Australia) used Eonfusion to observe fishery-related impacts on population structure and behavior patterns in Southern Rock Lobster (Jasus edwardsii).
Individual lobsters were fitted with acoustic telemetry tracking devices within and outside of no-take marine reserves. More than half a million positional data records were generated over an 18-month period. Time- and geo-referenced lobster tracks were fused with local bathymetry and viewed in Eonfusion.
Using Eonfusion, clear population differences were observed between the marine reserve and fished areas including variation in patterns of movement, population density and size structure. These differences manifest in the timing of lobster movement, visualized using Eonfusion's unique time slider control.
Eonfusion enables filtering of day and night time movement data and the sun-moon view may be used to visualize solar and lunar phases. For example, within the no-take marine reserves researchers observed that lobsters are more active during daylight hours and demonstrate a greater range of movement than lobsters in fished zones, where the population is more active during the night. Research will now focus on understanding the patterns of habitat utilization and the impact of environmental variables on lobster behavior.
