BIOLOGY 101L

Lab 11

Marine Conservation and MPAs Background and Assignments

Objectives

(1) Gain knowledge about coral reef ecosystems

(2) Explore marine resources conflicts and current approaches to solutions

(3) Investigate the effectiveness of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in conservation

(4) Visit a local marine habitat

I. Introduction

Corals are animals, and each individual is known as a polyp. Coral polyps resemble miniature sea anemones, and are closely related to them (both are cniderians). However, stony or hermatypic corals secrete a calcium carbonate skeleton or cup, known as a calyx, around themselves. Most corals contain single-celled plants (dinoflagellates) known as zooxanthellae within their tissues. Through the process of photosynthesis, the zooxanthellae can provide up to 90% of the energy required by the corals to live and grow, the rest is trapped by the polyps’ tentacles. Many coral polyps together form a coral colony – their skeletons/cups fuse forming what most people think of as a ‘coral’. The colonies can have many different shapes - branched, lobed, plated, or boulder-like. The skeletons of many different species together form a three dimensional matrix or structure, known as a coral reef. Coral reefs provide habitat for many different creatures, e.g. fish, sharks, shrimp, crabs, octopi, sea urchins, sea cucumbers, turtles etc. Together with adjacent and interrelated seagrass beds, mangrove forests, sandy and coral rubble areas, and their physical and chemical environments, they comprise the coral reef ecosystems which support well over a million species (coris.noaa.gov). Coral reefs are very high in biodiversity (contain a large number of species) – they cover less than 0.25% of the oceans, but contain about 25% of marine life forms (McAllister 1995).

Coral reefs provide very important ecosystem services to humans:

 Habitat for fish and other sea creatures that people eat -

fisheries

 Recreation and tourism - surfing, snorkeling, diving

 Coastal protection against tsunamis, storm surges, and wave erosion

 May have creatures containing compounds with medicinal properties and cures for diseases

Coral reefs are estimated to contribute $360 million to Hawaii’s

economy each year (Cesar and Van Beukering 2004), and $375 billion to the global economy annually (Pandolfi et al. 2008). However, coral reef habitats are not the only marine (saltwater or ocean) habitats that need to be protected. Other ecosystems also contain important resources that need to be conserved, these include:

 Kelp forests – also provide habitat for complex and diverse ecosystems in temperate regions

 Seamounts (the tops of underwater mountains) – also provide habitat for complex and diverse ecosystems

II Marine Protected Areas

(MPAs), are areas of ocean habitat where fishing or other activities are restricted or not permitted, and they protect living, non-living, cultural, and/or historic resources. MPAs are becoming increasingly important with the continued degradation of our marine environments. It is well documented that the human impacts of pollution and fishing are degrading all marine environments, from brackish estuaries, to pelagic (open ocean) waters, to tropical coral reefs. Marine reserves have been established in many countries all over the globe. According to a report from the Pew Oceans Commission (2002), there is a large body of evidence to suggest that the full protection of a marine community results in an increase in the size and number of individuals of fished species (both fish and invertebrates), within the protected areas. There also appear to be significant ‘spillover’ effects to the areas surrounding the reserves, i.e. fish or invertebrates within the protected areas produce young that may settle outside the reserves, thereby ‘re-seeding’ and benefiting the surrounding areas open to fishing. The creation of a marine reserve can also result in ecosystem recovery or reversion. A reversion occurs when the communities within an ecosystem revert back to their original state or structure. A dramatic example is the protection of sea otters in California. Halting the hunting of the sea otter (Enhydra lutris), reduced the abundance of sea urchins and allowed kelp forests (biodiverse temperate ecosystems) to recover. Sea otters prey on sea urchins, which graze on kelp and other algae (seaweed).

When the otters were hunted for their fur, the urchins increased in number since there were fewer otters eating them, and grazed down all the kelp. The sea urchins grazed and destroyed the kelp forests, creating ‘urchin barrens’ – bare rock. By protecting the sea otters, their population increased, they consumed more sea urchins, so the number of sea urchins was reduced, and the kelp forests were able to re-grow. The re-establishment of the kelp forests allowed the reemergence of the flora and fauna of kelp forest communities, and facilitated the re-constitution of the ecosystem. Another example is the creation of the Te Tapuwae o Rongokako Marine Reserve off the coast of New Zealand. Halting the exploitation of the spiny lobster (Jasus edwardsii) reduced the abundance of sea urchins, and also allowed kelp forests there to recover. The marine ecosystems of the Hawaiian archipelago are coming under increasing human pressure from pollution, agricultural runoff, commercial fishing, aquarium-trade collecting, recreational activities, and the introduction of alien or non-indigenous species. Despite the formation of MPAs, many fishing, collecting, and recreational activities are allowed within these MPAs. Their effectiveness is questionable, and implementation and enforcement is inconsistent. It has been observed time and again that the creation or demarcation of a reserve is useless without strict enforcement. As the human pressures upon the Hawaiian marine ecosystems mount, additional marine reserves will need to be created and enforced, to conserve the ecosystems, and limit further damage. Current research efforts are ongoing into the creation and implementation of marine reserves within the Hawaiian archipelago. The coral reef ecosystem is an important component of the Hawaiian archipelago. While Hawaiian coral reefs do not display the coral species richness typical of many other coral reefs around the world, they nonetheless display great diversity in invertebrate and fish species, have approximately a 25% rate of endemism (species found no where else), and are a valuable - and beautiful - natural resource that needs to be conserved. Along with the direct human pressures of pollution and fishing, Hawaiian ecosystems are under increasing pressure from alien/nonindigenous species of invertebrates, fish, and algae. Invasive algae have been shown to overgrow and kill coral in Kaneohe Bay (Woo 2000). There are currently an estimated 287 invertebrates, 20 algae, and 20 fish that are non-native to the Hawaiian archipelago (Eldredge and Smith 2001). The number of introduced marine species in Hawaii has steadily increased during the past century, with a significant number of species introduced in the 1970s and 1990s (Coles et al. 1999). This increase in the number of species introduced has coincided with the advent of larger

commercial shipping vessels with increased ballast capacities. Ballast water is water stored in tanks and used by ships to provide stability and balance, and is released before ships enter harbors - it is a major source of introduced species. Pearl Harbor, Oahu, is one of the major ports in the Hawaiian archipelago, and an important gateway for the introduction of non-indigenous species. Between 20 to 24 million individual fish, 10 to 11 million pieces of live coral, and 9 to 10 million other invertebrates are traded annually in the global aquarium trade (UNEP, 2003). Many of these species have very specific roles on coral reefs. The Hawaiian ornamental fish trade, “Represents a relatively small fishery that has wide ranging impacts across a wide variety of trophic levels and habitats disproportionate to either its economic value or its number of participants.” (HAS 2004) This is especially true when it comes to the impact on the economically important dive and snorkel tourism industry in Hawaii. Cesar and Beukering (2004) estimated total expenditures on snorkeling and diving of $66.9 million, of which $62.4 million were from tourists, and a total benefit of $304.2 million per year from snorkeling or diving on coral reefs. Conversely, the value of the aquarium trade fishery was $800,000 to $900,000 annually (HAS 2004), or more than 20 times lower than the diving and snorkeling industry. In addition to the direct removal of organisms, the current destructive harvesting practice of using cyanide in many parts of the world dooms most of the collected fish to die from liver failure (UNEP, 2003), and poisons other organisms on the reef. Many fish (5% to 75%) collected using cyanide die within a few hours. The surviving collected fish are all doomed to die – it is only a question of time, and most of them die from liver failure within a few weeks of being purchased (UNEP, 2003). Another disturbing practice is collecting fish that are almost impossible to keep alive in private aquariums, because of their very specialized diets, e.g. cleaner wrasses, and some species of butterfly fish that only eat live coral (UNEP, 2003). Cleaner wrasses provide a valuable service on coral reefs – they remove external parasites from other fish, and their removal may create health issues for the other fish on the reef. Other species that are exploited from coral reefs include large fish species harvested by the live reef fish trade, and corals and invertebrates harvested to provide curios and be used in traditional medicine (HAS 2004).

“The U.S. also is the largest consumer of coral skeletons and other dried animals used in the jewelry and curio trade.”(HAS, 2004) The good news is that these items are luxuries and are not essential to survival. This does not seem to be a cultural phenomenon, unlike Chinese traditional medicine, or the prestige afforded to consumers of the live reef fish trade in Hong Kong and China. It is difficult for governments (or any institution) to alter, “Culturally sanctioned consumption patterns or behaviors that involve strong traditions and religious beliefs.”(Hempel and Morozova 2001) These behaviors can be altered, but not without much resistance and the threat of penalties – the ivory and tiger body-part (again for Chinese traditional medicine) trades are examples of how this can be achieved via education, international agreements, and strict enforcement. Another grave threat to coral reefs is climate change caused by humans pumping huge quantities (6 billion tons per year by the U.S. alone) of carbon-dioxide into the atmosphere. This is resulting in global warming and ocean acidification. Global warming is caused by the retention of additional heat by the carbon-dioxide, a ‘greenhouse’

gas. Ocean acidification is caused by the increased atmospheric carbon dioxide dissolving into the oceans, making the oceans more acidic (think of the carbonation in soda that makes it sour). The pH of the oceans will be lowered, and this will make calcification (the formation of calcium carbonate skeletons) more energetically expensive, if not impossible for corals and other invertebrates. Ocean acidification may also result in the dissolving of coral reef material, increasing coral reef erosion. Finally, it must be recognized that MPAs are not a silver bullet solution – they must be combined with other actions and policies such as reduction or elimination of land-based pollution and runoff (both point and non-point source), species specific protection, and efforts to reduce carbon-dioxide emissions and combat climate change.

III. Assignments

Exercise1 Fisheries Simulation Exercise.

Follow the directions from the MPA Simulation Activity.doc. You will need to go to the website: ncep.amnh.org/marine_simulation/ to run the simulation.

Exercise 2 – please detach these sheets and hand in at end of lab

Name ______

1. What effects do you think the harvesting for curios, live fish trade, and the aquarium trade might be having on coral reefs?

2. How do you think the shells and skeletons used as curios are obtained?

Exercise 3 Stakeholders Discussion

1. Discussion: There are many ‘stakeholders’ who benefit from, or use coral reef resources. Some of these user groups will benefit from MPAs more than others. They include fishermen (recreational, commercial, and aquarium collectors), subsistence fishermen (use the ocean for food, include seaweed - limu), local recreational users (snorkelers, divers), tourist industry (tour boat operators and dive shops), Hawaiian cultural groups, and developers (golf-courses, resorts, hotels, homes). If you can think of any others, add them here: ______

______

______

______

Divide your class into groups of 2-4 students representing each stakeholder group. Take 5 to 10 minutes to answer the following questions for your stakeholder group:

1. Name of stakeholder group: ______.

2. What’s at stake, why do they care? ______

______

3. How would MPAs benefit this group? ______

______

4. How would MPAs cost this group? ______

______

5. Other thoughts about this stakeholder group? ______

______

Discuss your answers with the rest of your class. Some topics for discussion:

 Who will benefit from MPAs? How?

 Who will not benefit from MPAs? Why?

 Given the scientific evidence supporting the creation of MPAs, what might be the best way to design and implement them? Can we compromise?

6. MPA Design: It has been found that a circle is generally the best shape for an MPA as it has the lowest perimeter to area ratio. What facts would you need to know about the species you’re trying to protect?

7. In what different ways could MPAs be designed? To be effective at least 10% of an area needs to be protected. Your MPA is limited to 10% of the available area, draw your MPA designs below (Hint: you can have more than one MPA –a network)

Exercise 4 Homework Assignment

  1. Chose a MPA in Hawaii (Table 1).
  2. Which one did you chose and where is it located?
  3. What kinds of habitats are found there?
  4. What are the key species found there?
  5. How do these species interact with one another?
  6. Evaluate your MPA. What would you improve on or change? What worked?
  7. How would you describe the overall mission of the Marine Sanctuaries Program?

Resources:

  1. What do you think might happen to some of these marine environments if they are not protected?
  2. How does open ocean aquaculture affect a MPA?
  3. What is your relationship to the marine environment?
  4. Why should you care?

Table 1 MPAs in Hawaii

1.Ahihi-Kinau Natural Area Reserve
2.Hanauma Bay Marine Life Conservation District
3.Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary
4.Kahoolawe Island Reserve
5.Kalaupapa National Historical Park
6.Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park
7.Kealakekua Bay Marine Life Conservation District
8.Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge
9.Molokini Shoal Marine Life Conservation District
10.Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument
11.Pupukea Marine Life Conservation District
12.West Hawaii Regional Fishery Management Area

Report back at the end of class and turn in typed and well thought out responses by next week.

Exercise 5 Homework Assignment

This exercise is meant to stimulate your interest in Marine Biology by visiting a marine habitat on O’ahu.

 Visit a beach, tide-pools, or other marine habitat. Describe the habitat.

What plants, fish, and animals do you observe? Note any interesting observations.

 Answer one of the corresponding questions (1 paragraph) and how it relates to your beach visit.

 Type in a Word document (at least one page) and hand in next lab.

 Have fun!

QUESTIONS

Q1. The Hawaiian monk seal is one of the most critically endangered seal species in the world. How many are left? Where is its primary habitat?

Q2. Fisheries and Conservation: The ocean is a tremendous source of food and recreation, but its resources need protection. If we want to ensure that future generations can enjoy the same ocean resources we have today, conservation of fisheries and marine habitats is vital. How can this be accomplished?

Q3. Hanauma Bay is not a complete coral reef ecosystem - why not? When was Hanauma Bay designated as Hawaii's first Marine Life Conservation District? What did this signify in terms of human activities?

Modified from:

1