Preliminary results from the Antarctic krill surveys around the South Shetland Islands conducted by the Chinese fishing vessels during May to June 2021 and April 2022

The Chinese krill fishing vessels have been conducting annual acoustic survey on Antarctic krill in Subarea 48.1 since the 2013/2014 fishing season. Krill biomass estimates from these surveys provided important information for understanding the variation of krill stock in summer seasons. Here the preliminary results on krill distribution from the acoustic survey in Subarea 48.1 conducted by the Chinese fishing vessels in the early winter seasons of 2021 and 2022 were presented. The acoustic data were processed using the automated processing technique - ‘RapidKrill’ package on board the vessel and sent to land by email, highlighting the potential value of automated acoustic data processing technique for providing timely krill estimates for krill management.