Marine Reserves

The relationship between species and functional diversity remains poorly understood for nearly all ecosystem types, yet determining this relationship is critically important for developing both a mechanistic understanding of community assembly and appropriate expectations and approaches to protecting and restoring biological communities. Here we use two distinct data sets, one from kelp forests in the Channel Islands, California, and one from a global synthesis of marine reserves, to directly test how ...

This report provides details of activities undertaken by the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS), Geoscience Australia (GA), the University of Western Australia and the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory during a marine biodiversity survey to the Oceanic Shoals Commonwealth Marine Reserve (Timor Sea) in 2012. The survey was an activity within the Australian Government’s National Environmental Research Program Marine Biodiversity Hub and the key component of Theme 4 – Regional Biodiversity Discovery to Support Marine Bioregional Plans. Data collected during the survey will be used to support research being undertaken in other Themes of the Marine Biodiversity Hub, including the modelling of ecosystem processes for the northern region, and to support the work programs of the Department of the Environment (previously Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities). These data will be made publicly available, via the Marine Biodiversity Hub website and the Australian Ocean Data Network Portal, adding to the knowledge base of Australian tropical shelf habitats and contributing to the long term management of these poorly understood areas.

Effective spatial management in the ocean requires a network of conservation areas that are connected by larval and adult dispersal. We propose a conceptual framework for including the likely impacts of a changing climate on marine connectivity, and synthesize information on the relationships between changing ocean temperature and acidification, connectivity and conservation tools. Our framework relies on concepts of functional connectivity, which depends on an organism's biological and behavioral responses to the physical environment, and structural connectivity, which describes changes in the physical and spatial structure of the environment that affect connectivity and movement. Our review confirms that ocean climate change likely reduces potential dispersal distance and therefore functional connectivity. Structural connectivity in the ocean will inevitably change with the spatial arrangement of biogenic habitats resulting from disturbance as well as enhanced growth and mortality due to climate change. Climate change will also likely reduce the spatial scale of connectivity, suggesting that we will need more closely spaced protected areas.

How can the ecological consequences of the increasing
use of airspace by humans be minimized?

Over the past century, humans have
increasingly used the airspace for
purposes such as transportation, energy
generation, and surveillance.
Conflict with wildlife may arise from
buildings, turbines, power lines, and
antennae that project into space and from
flying objects such as aircrafts, helicopters,
and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs, or
drones) (see the figure) ( 1– 3). The resulting
collision and disturbance risks profoundly
affect species ecology and conservation ( 1, 4,
5). Yet, aerial interactions between humans
and wildlife are often neglected when considering
the ecological consequences of human
activities.

Marine Reserves (MRs) are amongst the most common tools used for marine conservation around the world. New Zealand (NZ) has 34 MRs protecting approximately 7.6% of NZ‘s territorial seas. In NZ the main purpose of MRs is to allow scientific research to be conducted in the absence of human disturbance. The establishment of MRs around the country produces different biological, social and economic effects in the surrounding communities. However, the majority of previous MR studies have evaluated the biological effects of protection and not the social and economic effects. This thesis investigates how established MRs are performing in terms of social, economic, social and biological goals and contributing to society‘s well-being within New Zealand. For this research I conducted research at two MRs. The Taputeranga MR (TMR) was established in 2008, and is the newest MR established in New Zealand. It is located in the Wellington region, on the Wellington south coast, and extends from Princess Bay to Quarry Bay, protecting 8.54 km2 of coastal waters. Kapiti MR (KMR), which is one of the oldest MRs in New Zealand, was established in 1992 in the Wellington region, approximately 50 km north of Wellington city. It is located on the Kapiti coast in front of Paraparaumu beach. The KMR covers 20.90 km2of coastal water, divided into two parts; the largest part is 17.50 km2and the smaller part is 3.4 km2.
In this thesis I am starting to explore the financial cost of the MRs (chapter 2), where I attempted to estimate all of the costs required to establish a MR. The Taputeranga MR was used as a case study along with an analysis of the management costs for four other MRs. I aimed to find predictor variables across these five MRs to explain differences in their management cost. In addition, I also estimated the displacement cost to fishermen. Results showed that the Taputeranga‘s pre-establishment process cost approximately NZ $508,000, and the establishment process cost approximately NZ $ 354,000. In addition, the average management cost across five MRs per year was around NZ $63,000 year -1. With respect to the predictor variables, the Akaike Information Criterion (AICc) analysis showed that MR size best explains cost, where small MRs are more expensive to maintain than big MRs. The displacement cost was estimated as NZ $22,000 approximately per vessel.
I also researched and examined the social impacts of MRs (chapter 3). The aim of this chapter was to explore the human dimensions of the TMR and KMR and a hypothetical MR as a control area. I used a series of questionnaires with five main groups affected by the establishment of the MRs. Results showed that of the people who conducted activities close to the TMR and KMR, nobody selected either area specifically because there was a MR in the vicinity. With respect to MR knowledge, the majority of people at both MRs and at the hypothetical MR believed they knew what a MR was, however, nobody could provide a correct description of the main reasons for MR designation in New Zealand. Most groups surveyed at KMR indicated that its establishment had not personally affected them. At TMR, all groups believed they had experienced direct (personal) and indirect problems since the establishment of the MR. At the hypothetical MR, the majority of respondents perceived that its establishment would not cause any personal or family problems. I found that respondents at both MRs and the hypothetical MR believed that MRs are a good tool for protecting the environment.
I also develop a framework to understand and estimate MR goods and services by using the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment framework (chapter 4). The aim of this study was to identify and determine use and non-use values of the Taputeranga MR and Kapiti MR. At KMR and TMR I identified eight main value-categories: (1) Commercial fishing benefits from MR, (2) Nature-based tourism, (3) Education, (4) Research, (5) Public recreation, (6) Recreational fishing benefit from MR, (7) Ecosystem health, and (8) Existence – Bequest value. The existence-bequest values (non-use values) were estimated based on the public‘s willingness to pay (WTP) and found to have a mean value of NZ $61.54 at the TMR and NZ $31.45 at the KMR per household/year.
After being exploring cost of MRs, social effects of MRs and MR goods and services, I researched the biological effects of MRs. For this I examined the effect of MRs on rock lobster (Jasus edwardsii) biomass and abundance (chapter 5). I investigated how rock lobsters (RLs) (Jasus edwardsii) have responded to the protection afforded by the TMR and KMR by comparing rock lobster Catch Per Unit Effort (CPUE) between reserve and nonreserve areas. The average CPUE was higher inside both MRs than outside. Also bigger RLs were caught inside both MRs‘. In addition, the TMR catches were twice as high compared with historical catches, and the KMR compared with historical catches were 1.93 times higher.
By integrating all these different chapters and methodologies I have been able to provide insights that will help in the future of conservation of MRs, by improving the level of information for better decision-making, improving the communication between decision makers and stakeholders and to build better relationships between researchers and non extractive users of MRs. Moreover, I provide recommendations that could be useful to include within the current Marine Protected Area Policy and potentially improve it. These recommendations also attempt to minimize the time and costs involved in MRs from the pre establishment stages, by creating effective and formal alliances between different groups of stakeholders.

Yaşar Kemal, 1972 yılında yayımladığı Denizler Kurudu adlı eserinin moral coğrafyasında, ünlü doğa korumacı, ekolog ve doğa yazarı Aldo Leopold’un ekosistem sağlığını ön plana alan ve genişletilmiş bir toplum anlayışı içeren Toprak Etiği (Land Ethic) düşüncesinde olduğu gibi, üst predatörleri dahil tüm deniz canlılarını ve denizel alanları etik sorumluluğun sınırlarına dahil etmiştir. Denizler Kurudu’da tasvir edildiği üzere Marmara Denizi’ndeki balık tükenişi, Leopold’un “Bir Dağ Gibi Düşünmek” adlı klasik anlatısında olduğu gibi avcı-av (predator/prey) dengesindeki bozulmayı hatırlatır. Bu yazıda Leopold, çağlar boyu geçerli olacak bütüncü bir doğa koruma felsefesi yaratarak, ekosistem sağlığı için, düşüncesizce yok edilen üst predatör kurtların da korunması gerekliliği üzerinde durmuştur. Bu durumda Kemal’in Denizler Kurudu’da anlattığı üst predatör yunusların aşırı avlanması ve bunun neticesinde deniz ekosisteminde meydana gelen tahribat, Toprak Etiği’nin temel ilkelerinin deniz ekosistemleri için de geçerli olabileceğini düşündürür. Bu bağlamda Denizler Kurudu, dünya denizlerinde ve okyanuslarında süregelen -yunuslar gibi- üst predatörlerin aşırı avlanmasını durdurmaya katkı sağlayacak bir eser olup Marmara Denizi örneğinde denizlerin sağlığı için avcı-av dengesinin korunması gerektiğine işaret eder. Kemal’in bu duruşu, sadece Marmara Denizi’nde değil, tüm dünya denizlerinde süregelen balık tükenişinin önüne geçilmesini sağlayacak bir “Deniz Etiği” olarak değerlendirilebilir.

The material in this book is organized in four parts. Part I (this part) provides a general overview of the topics and issues covered in this book. Part II deals with general issues involved in biological conservation, especially biodiversity loss. Part III concentrates on policies for the conservation, use and management of wildlife species, particularly animals. In this part, general issues involving open-access or common-property are given attention and the management of particular species such as kangaroos, whales, dugong and Asian elephants are given specific consideration. Part IV covers economic aspects of protected areas, the economics of wilderness preservation, the utilisation and management of marine reserves, economic processes involved in deforestation in a national park in Indonesia, and aspects of forest management in China and India.

Marine environments, key life-support systems for the earth, are under severe threat. Issues associated with managing these common property resources are complex and interrelated. Networks of marine reserves can be valuable for mitigating threats to marine systems, yet the successful design and implementation of such networks has been limited. Efficient ways to conserve marine environments are urgently needed. This Focus Section of The Professional Geographer explores the development of marine reserve networks based on geomorphology, fish biology, ecological connectivity, and appropriate governance. The articles in this Focus Section offer examples of the following: (1) distinctive reef geomorphology dictating the spawning locations of reef fishes, which in turn serve as critical source sites for the replenishment of distant reefs by means of larval transport; (2) an example of a simplified oceanographic model that predicts larval transport from fish breeding sites to important nursery areas; and (3) a case study of the development of a marine reserve network that illustrates key elements of a successful strategy. In sum, this Focus Section offers case studies that show the value of marine geomorphology, oceanographic connectivity, and stakeholder involvement as key elements of multidisciplinary geographic studies applied to the design of marine reserve networks. Geographers can further contribute to the conservation and management of coastal and marine ecosystems in many ways that involve subdisciplines of remote sensing and geographic information systems, political and economic geography, political ecology, and ethnography. Los entornos marinos, sistemas de apoyo biológico claves para la tierra, se encuentran severamente amenazados. Los asuntos asociados con el manejo de estos recursos de propiedad común son complejos e interrelacionados. Las redes de reservas marinas pueden ser valiosas para mitigar las amenazas a los sistemas marinos, aunque el diseño e implementación exitosos de tales redes ha sido de poco alcance. Se necesitan con urgencia procedimientos eficientes para conservar el medio ambiente marino. Esta Sección Focal de The Professional Geographer explora el desarrollo de ese tipo de redes en lo que concierne a geomorfología, biología ictiológica, conectividad ecológica y apropiada acción gubernamental. Los artículos de esta Sección Focal ofrecen ejemplos de lo siguiente: (1) la peculiar geomorfología coralina que determina las localidades de desove de los peces de arrecife, que a la vez sirven de asiento a fuentes críticas para el reabastecimiento de arrecifes distantes a través del transporte de larvas; (2) un ejemplo de un modelo oceanográfico simplificado que predice el transporte de larvas desde los sitios de reproducción de peces hasta áreas importantes de crecimiento; y (3) un estudio de caso del desarrollo de una red de reserva marina que ilustra sobre los elementos claves de una estrategia exitosa. En suma, esta Sección Focal ofrece estudios de casos que muestran el valor de la geomorfología marina, la conectividad oceanográfica y la activa participación de partes interesadas, como elementos claves de estudios geográficos multidisciplinarios aplicados al diseño de redes de reservas marinas. Los geógrafos pueden contribuir todavía más en la conservación y manejo de ecosistemas marinos litorales de maneras variadas que involucran las subdisciplinas de percepción remota y sistemas de información geográfica, geografía política y económica, ecología política y etnografía.

Sea urchins can alter the composition and dynamics of algal communities by grazing. Changes in their displacement capability can influence their grazing and thus their effect on algal communities. The daily and monthly movement of Paracentrotus lividus inside and outside a marine reserve in the NW Mediterranean Sea was studied in order to determine the role of predation in sea urchin movements and its potential grazing impacts. During the 3-month study, the total distance travelled by sea urchins ranged from 71.8 to 673.6 cm (mean = 379.2 cm, SD = 221.3). Home ranges (distances from the initial position) were between 50 and 302 cm (mean = 150.7 cm, SD = 99.4). Movements were not directional but random, with a mean of 150 cm around the initial position. The activity of Paracentrotus lividus was significantly higher at night than during daylight. Total displacement at the end of the experiment was significantly higher in the unprotected area than in the reserve, as was the home range. The linear distance travelled in a 24-h period ranged between 6 and 220 cm with a mean home range of 51 cm. These results agree with those of other authors, and allow us to rule out major migratory processes of sea urchin populations in this area. Nevertheless, these results underline the role of predatory fishes in reducing herbivory pressure by trophic cascades, reinforcing the evidence that sea urchin escape behaviour may be an important factor in structuring algal communities.

SUMMARY Currently the principle focus in marine conservation planning is on the conservation of marine biodiversity through the establishment of no-take marine reserves. No-take marine reserves provide permanent closed areas to all forms of fishing and extractive activities. These reserves represent a precautionary ecosystem-based approach to the management of our marine and coastal resources. Whilst there is a growing body

A total of 76 reef fish species from 31 families was collected at two coral reef sites, one in a marine reserve and the other in an adjacent fished area of the Soufrière Marine Management Area (SMMA) in St. Lucia. Five families (Scaridae, Pomacentridae, Synodontidae, Apogonidae and Blennidae) dominated the collections at both sites while species of high commercial value were rare. Monthly patterns of larval supply differed among selected species, but overall trends were similar between the two sites for most species. However, despite the geographical proximity of the two sites, the fished area received a consistently higher abundance and diversity of larvae than the marine reserve throughout the study period. Patterns in larval supply generally were reflected in the settlement patterns of Stegastes partitus. Results suggest that local-scale variation in hydrodynamic and or biological features is influencing the arrival and hence settlement of larvae at the reef.