Fish with chips: tracking reef fish movements to evaluate size and connectivity of Caribbean marine protected areas

Coral reefs and associated fish populations have experienced rapid decline in the Caribbean region and marine protected areas (MPAs) have been widely implemented to address this decline. The performance of no-take MPAs (i.e., marine reserves) for protecting and rebuilding fish populations is influen...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:PloS one 2014-05, Vol.9 (5), p.e96028
Main Authors: Pittman, Simon J, Monaco, Mark E, Friedlander, Alan M, Legare, Bryan, Nemeth, Richard S, Kendall, Matthew S, Poti, Matthew, Clark, Randall D, Wedding, Lisa M, Caldow, Chris
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acoustic impedance
Animal Migration - physiology
Animals
Biology and Life Sciences
Coral Reefs
Design analysis
Earth Sciences
Ecological effects
Ecology
Ecology and Environmental Sciences
Epinephelus guttatus
Epinephelus itajara
Epinephelus striatus
Fish
Fish populations
Fisheries management
Fishes
Fishes - physiology
Geospatial data
Habitat utilization
Habitats
Marine conservation
Marine protected areas
Mycteroperca venenosa
Populations
Protected areas
Protection and preservation
Puerto Rico
Reef fish
Scaling
Spatial discrimination
Spawning
Telecommunications equipment
Transmitters
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Summary:Coral reefs and associated fish populations have experienced rapid decline in the Caribbean region and marine protected areas (MPAs) have been widely implemented to address this decline. The performance of no-take MPAs (i.e., marine reserves) for protecting and rebuilding fish populations is influenced by the movement of animals within and across their boundaries. Very little is known about Caribbean reef fish movements creating a critical knowledge gap that can impede effective MPA design, performance and evaluation. Using miniature implanted acoustic transmitters and a fixed acoustic receiver array, we address three key questions: How far can reef fish move? Does connectivity exist between adjacent MPAs? Does existing MPA size match the spatial scale of reef fish movements? We show that many reef fishes are capable of traveling far greater distances and in shorter duration than was previously known. Across the Puerto Rican Shelf, more than half of our 163 tagged fish (18 species of 10 families) moved distances greater than 1 km with three fish moving more than 10 km in a single day and a quarter spending time outside of MPAs. We provide direct evidence of ecological connectivity across a network of MPAs, including estimated movements of more than 40 km connecting a nearshore MPA with a shelf-edge spawning aggregation. Most tagged fish showed high fidelity to MPAs, but also spent time outside MPAs, potentially contributing to spillover. Three-quarters of our fish were capable of traveling distances that would take them beyond the protection offered by at least 40-64% of the existing eastern Caribbean MPAs. We recommend that key species movement patterns be used to inform and evaluate MPA functionality and design, particularly size and shape. A re-scaling of our perception of Caribbean reef fish mobility and habitat use is imperative, with important implications for ecology and management effectiveness.
ISSN:1932-6203
1932-6203
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0096028