What a habitat score is: model match, not a fish count

The habitat score says how well a point's depth, Folk-5 seabed and structure match what a species uses, shown Poor to Hot. It is habitat suitability, not a fish count or a catch promise.

What does the habitat score mean?

It is a habitat suitability score: for one species and technique, how closely the depth band, Folk-5 seabed class and distance to structure at a point match the habitat that species uses. Higher means better-fitting bottom, not more fish.

The score measures habitat fit, not fish. AlgoCatch reads one pin for one species and one technique, then asks how well that patch matches the habitat the fish uses. The comparison uses preferred depth, preferred bottom, and how close the pin sits to shore or to a structure edge. Species hold in those preferred bands and bottoms (T2, FishBase and FAO). The live legend publishes the result as a habitat suitability score.

A high number means the bottom fits. It does not mean a school is there, and it does not mean anything will bite at 19:00. Two anglers on the same rock can see two different numbers if one selected the free species and the other selected a paid species. That is correct: the preference set changed.

Use the score to pick the bottom, then fish it with the technique you already chose. If you came to spin from the rocks, read the score for that species in a shore technique, not a trolling line in the middle of the bay. If the number is high and the class is wrong for that fish, the plan is still wrong. Read class and metres with the number. The rest of this page names the tiers, the inputs, the limits and where the figure appears.

What do the five tiers Poor to Hot mean?

Poor, Fair, Good, High, Hot. For gilthead, scores above 70 are high suitability; spots scoring 60 or more are VIP, and public place teasers show zones up to 50. Fish Good and above; treat Poor as the wrong bottom.

The live legend bins a numeric habitat suitability score into five tiers. The same number also has three visibility bands, which is why a pin can look locked on a phone after 20 August 2026. Public place teasers show zones up to 50. Free shows that species below 60. Spots scoring 60+ sit behind paid access. None of those bands changes the model. They change what the public page, the free map and a paid map are allowed to draw.

The mix that turns the three inputs into one number is not published. What this page owns is the tier names, the legend (above 70 = high suitability), the 60+ lock, and the action that belongs to each tier.

Tier	What it means	What to do
Poor	Depth, seabed or structure do not match the species' habitat; the wrong bottom — skip.	Skip.
Fair	Partial match; fish only if nothing better is nearby on the right class.	Fish only if nothing better is nearby on the right class.
Good	Depth and bottom fit the species; a fishable spot for the chosen technique.	Fish it.
High	Strong habitat fit; prioritise and verify depth on the water.	Prioritise and verify depth on the water.
Hot	Best habitat fit in the model; for gilthead, scores above 70 are high suitability and spots scoring 60 or more are VIP.	Prioritise and verify depth on the water.

Read gilthead seabream habitat for the sand-and-seagrass edges the legend is scoring. Then act on the tier, not on the hope that Hot means fish.

What goes into the score?

Three inputs: the depth band compared with the species' preferred range, the Folk-5 seabed class under the point, and the distance to shore and to the nearest structure edge. So two bays 500 m apart can score Poor and Hot.

The number is decided before any forecast layer is drawn. The model asks three questions about a static pin.

1. Do the metres sit inside the species' preferred range? Those metres come from EMODnet Bathymetry; where the depth layer comes from.
2. Does the class under the point match the bottom that species uses? Class meaning lives on what each Folk-5 class means (T1, EMODnet Geology).
3. What is the distance to structure edge, and how far is the pin from shore? A wall, a drop or a seagrass boundary a few tens of metres away can lift or kill the fit.

Species hold in preferred metres and bottoms (T2, FishBase and FAO), so a small move can change the answer. The season selector shifts dentex depth; common dentex habitat owns that seasonal shift. This page only records that the selector exists.

On 11 July 2026 at Savudrija I dropped two pins about 80 m apart on the same evening for the same species and technique. The inshore pin sat on open sand and read Poor. The pin on the structure edge read Hot. The water looked the same from the wall. The three inputs did not.

When a pin scores low, check which input failed before you walk to the next bay. Wrong class is a different fix from wrong metres or a pin sitting in the middle of a plate.

What does the habitat score not tell you?

It is not a fish count, a catch log or a navigation depth. Structure is static; sea temperature and current are separate layers. The depth under a score can be check the depth against your fishfinder.

Four limits sit on every tier.

It is not a fish count. A Hot chip does not say a fish is under the pin. It does not say orada will bite at noon in July.

It is not a catch log. Yesterday's photograph from a neighbouring bay is a different kind of claim and a different product.

It is not a navigation depth. Do not steer or judge under-keel clearance from a habitat pin. Use a plotter and official charts for that job.

Structure is static. The class, the contour and the edge the model scored this morning are the same structure it will score tonight. If the evening is wrong, the habitat can still be right. That is why "the score was wrong today" usually means the day was wrong, not the bottom.

The in-app prompt asks whether the metres look right because near-shore depth is mixed-resolution. Small differences from a sounder are normal. How the model is tested sits on the model-accuracy article; this page states no accuracy figure.

Pair the tier with the conditions layers, then verify metres before you anchor or commit the evening session.

Which species are scored, and which are free?

Gilthead seabream is scored on the free plan (gilthead seabream free; other species VIP). The other habitat species need paid access. Trolling routes carry a trolling fish score for dentex, amberjack, leerfish, bonito and mahi-mahi.

The two lists are not the same. Copy the live legend on the day you publish; this table is that legend, not a count.

Species	Free or paid	Habitat page
Gilthead seabream	Free	See the sand-and-seagrass cluster above
European seabass	Paid	[European seabass habitat](/en/species/european-seabass)
Common pandora	Paid	[common pandora and bottom species](/en/species/common-pandora)
Common dentex	Paid	See the rock-drop cluster in the inputs section
Greater amberjack	Paid	how pelagic scores work
Bluefish	Paid	Pelagic cluster, same page
Atlantic bonito	Paid	Pelagic cluster, same page
Atlantic mackerel	Paid	Pelagic cluster, same page
Mahi-mahi	Paid	Pelagic cluster, same page

Bottoms and seasons sit on which bottom and depth each Adriatic species holds on. Paid species: which pass unlocks the VIP species.

Where does the score appear in the map?

Four places: the species habitat layer with its Poor-to-Hot legend; Spot Finder, scanning structure within 2 km of a pin; the score per trolling route; and the score per point in Inspect or the Habitat Checker.

It is one habitat suitability score, read four ways. Users meet it in four screens and think they have four metrics. They do not.

The habitat layer legend is the browse view: colour and tier across a stretch of coast for the species you picked. Spot Finder within 2 km is the compare view: it scans structure around a pin and returns scored candidates. The score per trolling route is the same fitness idea aggregated along a line, not a second model. The point read in Inspect or when you run a free habitat check is the confirm view: one coordinate, one species, one technique.

Use the layer to walk a coast. Use the 2 km scan to put two edges next to each other. Use the route figure when you already chose trolling. Use Inspect or the pin check when you already have a rock, a mole or a waypoint. Mechanics of the scan and the route rank live on their own pages.

How should you act on a score?

Read class first, then depth, then score. Fish Good or better; skip Poor. Compare pins on the same class and move 10–30 m to find the edge if a pin is mute; check depth on your fishfinder.

The score is the last read, not the first. Class and metres explain the number. Edges change it within tens of metres. A high number on the wrong bottom is still the wrong plan.

On 11 July 2026 the Savudrija Poor pin sat on open sand at about 3 m. The Hot pin sat 80 m away on the same class edge at about 4 m. I did not treat the Hot chip as fish. I treated it as the bottom that fitted.

Before you cast or drop the anchor:

1. Read the class under the pin.
2. Read the metres.
3. Read the tier for the species and technique you will actually fish.
4. If the pin is mute, move 10–30 m to find the edge; compare only pins on the same class.
5. Verify metres on the water, then fish Good or better and skip Poor.

Do not chase a deeper number on empty sand. Run the routine once on the free map before you leave the car.

Species pages:

• which bottom and depth each Adriatic species holds on
• gilthead seabream habitat
• common dentex habitat
• European seabass habitat
• common pandora and bottom species
• how pelagic scores work

If the class fits and the tier is Good or better, run a free habitat check on the pin you will actually stand on or drift over, then treat Poor as a reason to change place before you burn the evening.

Updated 2026.