{"id":21943,"date":"2026-04-06T08:00:01","date_gmt":"2026-04-06T06:00:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.h2o-drones.com\/?p=21943"},"modified":"2026-04-01T13:46:04","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T11:46:04","slug":"advancing-marine-research-with-rovs-natural-englands-habitat-mapping","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.h2o-drones.com\/en\/nieuws-en\/advancing-marine-research-with-rovs-natural-englands-habitat-mapping\/","title":{"rendered":"Advancing Marine Research with ROVs: Natural England’s Habitat Mapping"},"content":{"rendered":"

Natural England<\/a>, the UK Government\u2019s environmental advisory body, adopted remotely operated vehicle (ROV) technology to support habitat monitoring projects across the English coastline. This case study highlights how the organization leveraged a Deep Trekker ROV to improve marine protected area (MPA) assessments, reduce survey costs, and expand environmental research capabilities.<\/p>\n

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\nMaerl dive survey team. Credit \u00a9 Natural England\/Mike Anselmi<\/em><\/p>\n

Using ROVs in Environmental Surveys and Habitat Mapping<\/h3>\n

Meg Hayward Smith<\/a>, Marine Higher Officer for the Devon, Cornwall, and Isle of Scilly area team at Natural England, shared how the team first introduced the Deep Trekker ROV into their marine monitoring work, primarily to support exploratory surveys and ground truth existing habitat records. It was their first experience using an ROV, and while they were initially unfamiliar with its full range of capabilities, they quickly recognised the substantial benefits the technology provided. As the team gained hands-on experience, they saw the significant value it added to their monitoring efforts. Looking ahead, they hope to expand its use for more detailed habitat mapping.<\/p>\n

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\nMeg Hayward Smith deploying the DTG3 ROV. Credit \u00a9 Natural England\/Mike Anselmi<\/em><\/p>\n

Meg explained that this was the team\u2019s first experience using an ROV. \u201cWe weren\u2019t familiar with other systems, so in those early surveys, we focused on using it to support environmental monitoring – checking habitats, carrying out pre-dive assessments, and ground truthing locations before deploying divers.\u201d<\/p>\n

This functionality proved particularly valuable, allowing the team to assess underwater conditions efficiently and validate habitat records before committing diver time. With each deployment, the team became more confident in operating the ROV and more aware of its capabilities.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter conducting several surveys back-to-back and learning how best to integrate the ROV, we realised it had much greater potential across our work,\u201d Meg said. This prompted a shift in thinking – moving beyond initial applications toward exploring how the ROV could be more strategically embedded in their survey processes.<\/p>\n

In particular, they started thinking about incorporating more advanced techniques, such as using the ROV for transects and deploying it to specific locations for more targeted data collection.<\/p>\n

The team is now considering future applications such as conducting structured transects and targeted deployments to collect more consistent and high-resolution data. \u201cWe\u2019re at the point where we see it as a valuable tool,\u201d Meg explained. \u201cNow the question is: how can we get the most benefit from it and apply it more widely across different surveys?\u201d<\/p>\n

Operational efficiency is also an important consideration. So far, both Natural England\u2019s in-house dive team and regional area teams have utilised the ROV to support marine monitoring work. While the current model has proven effective for exploratory work and ground truthing, a more advanced system in the future could support detailed habitat mapping and provide stronger evidence to inform conservation decisions. This would help ensure that future surveys are carried out as effectively and efficiently as possible. The ROV already offers a cost-effective means of optimising survey time and resources, supporting more informed planning and decision-making across projects.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe ROV provides valuable support to our surveys by enhancing our in-house capabilities, complementing the work of external contractors. As the first ROV in our organisation, it has already proven to be a useful tool in improving our monitoring efforts.\u201d<\/h5>\n

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To enhance flexibility and cost-efficiency in marine surveys, the ROV offers valuable support for exploratory work and effectively complements established survey programs.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile we currently work within certain constraints, the ROV supports exploratory work by enabling us to survey potential new sites more flexibly and at a lower cost,\u201d Meg explained. \u201cThis helps make our surveys more efficient and effective, working alongside our existing survey methods to enhance overall monitoring capabilities.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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Why Use an Underwater ROV for Marine Habitat Surveys?<\/h3>\n

Natural England is responsible for advising the UK government on environmental protection. A core component of their work involves monitoring MPAs to assess habitat types, health, and density along England\u2019s coasts.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt Natural England, we advise the government on environmental issues across England. As part of this role, we carry out marine monitoring to assess the condition of Marine Protected Areas along the English coastline. This includes improving our understanding of habitat types, evaluating their health, and identifying the extent of key habitats.”<\/p>\n

According to Meg, the team typically conducts habitat monitoring using a combination of side scan sonar and diver surveys. However, many coastal sites are difficult or costly to access with divers or large vessels. The addition of an ROV created a new way to conduct environmental assessments in challenging or unverified areas.<\/p>\n

Reducing Risk and Costs of Diver Deployments<\/h4>\n

ROVs enabled Natural England to perform preliminary checks in uncertain locations where the presence of protected species or habitats – like maerl beds or seagrass – was unconfirmed.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe pre-selected our sites based on previous records and data from Seasearch,\u201d Meg explained. \u201cIn some cases, we weren\u2019t entirely certain whether maerl was present. Records suggested it might be there, but confirmation was needed. Rather than deploying divers and using air resources – limiting their availability for the rest of the survey – we used the ROV to ground truth those records and verify the presence of maerl. This approach has already proven highly effective. It also allowed us to conduct exploratory surveys at potential new sites where we don\u2019t yet have records. While we currently focus the ROV work on confirming known sites, we hope to expand its use for more detailed habitat mapping in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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\nKing Scallop Pecten maximus on Maerl. Credit \u00a9 Natural England, Danielle Agnew<\/em><\/p>\n

This approach provided several advantages:<\/p>\n