Image-based coral reef formation detection and change assessment system

• Main Authors: Ofren, Hernan Franz M., Ramos, Robert Joshua G., Villanueva, Alexa Angela U.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2015
• Subjects: Coral reef conservation; Coral reef ecology
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etd_bachelors/7141
• Institution: De La Salle University

Coral reefs play an essential role in marine biodiversity as they provide protection and shelter for marine species. Coral reefs also take a major part in maintaining the amount of carbon dioxide and filtration of coastal waters. The destruction and decrease of coral reefs may lead to an imbalance in marine biodiversity. Hence, the coral reefs have to be protected through monitoring and surveillance. In this study, an image-based system that monitors coral reef formation detection and assess coral reef changes was implemented. Image Differencing and Post Classification Methods were used to perform recognition and detection of coral reef formation. Foreign objects such as coins, metal rod and stones were dropped to the experimental set-up. Significant changes in the coral reef environment as well as the significant changes in the formation of the coral reefs after the appearance of foreign objects were assessed. The average accuracy of the system relative to the foreign objects considered is 88.5%. Overall, the study proved that both algorithms are effective in underwater image processing of the coral reef formation. Statistically, there is no significant difference between the results of the two algorithms as used in this study.