Rodrigo H. Bustamante

ECOLOGICAL CRITERIA FOR EVALUATING CANDIDATE SITES FOR MARINE RESERVES

Several schemes have been developed to help select the locations of marine reserves. All of them combine social, economic, and biological criteria, and few offer any guidance as to how to prioritize among the criteria identified. This can imply that the relative weights given to different criteria are unimportant. Where two sites are of equal value ecologically; then socioeconomic criteria should dominate the choice of which should be protected. However, in many cases, socioeconomic criteria are given equal or greater weight than ecological considerations in the choice of sites. This can lead to selection of reserves with little biological value that fail to meet many of the desired objectives. To avoid such a possibility, we develop a series of criteria that allow preliminary evaluation of candidate sites according to their relative biological values in advance of the application of socioeconomic criteria. We include criteria that,. while not strictly biological, have a strong influence on the species present or ecological processes. Out scheme enables sites to be assessed according to their biodiversity, the processes which underpin that diversity, and the processes that support fisheries and provide a spectrum of other services important to people. Criteria that capture biodiversity values include biogeographic representation, habitat representation and heterogeneity, and presence of species or populations of special interest (e.g., threatened species). Criteria that capture sustainability of biodiversity and fishery values include the size of reserves necessary to protect viable habitats, presence of exploitable species, vulnerable life stages, connectivity among reserves, links among ecosystems, and provision of ecosystem services to people. Criteria measuring human and natural threats enable candidate sites to be eliminated from consideration if risks are too great, but also help prioritize among sites where threats can be mitigated by protection. While our criteria can be applied to the design of reserve networks, they also enable choice of single reserves to be made in the context of the attributes of existing protected areas. The overall goal of our scheme is to promote the development of reserve networks that will maintain biodiversity and ecosystem functioning at large scales. The values of eco-system goods and services for people ultimately depend on meeting this objective.

Pelagic protected areas: the missing dimension in ocean conservation.

Fewer protected areas exist in the pelagic ocean than any other ecosystem on Earth. Although there is increasing support for marine protected areas (MPAs) as a tool for pelagic conservation, there have also been numerous criticisms of the ecological, logistical and economic feasibility of place-based management in the dynamic pelagic environment. Here we argue that recent advances across conservation, oceanography and fisheries science provide the evidence, tools and information to address these criticisms and confirm MPAs as defensible and feasible instruments for pelagic conservation. Debate over the efficacy of protected areas relative to other conservation measures cannot be resolved without further implementation of MPAs in the pelagic ocean.

Modelling climate-change effects on Australian and Pacific aquatic ecosystems: a review of analytical tools and management implications

Climate change presents significant challenges to modelling and managing aquatic resources. Equilibrium assumptions common in many modelling approaches need to be replaced by formulations that allow for changing baselines and integration of ongoing changes and adaptations by species, ecosystems and humans. As ecosystems change, so will the ways humans use, monitor and manage them. Consequently, adaptive management loops and supporting tools deserve more prominence in the management toolbox. Models are critical tools for providing an early understanding of the challenges to be faced by integrating observations and examining possible solutions. We review modelling tools currently available to incorporate the effect of climate change on marine and freshwater ecosystems, and the implications for management of natural resources. System non-linearity can confound interpretations and hence adaptive management responses are needed that are robust to unexpected outcomes. An improvement in the ability to model the effects of climate change from a social and economic perspective is necessary. The outputs from ‘end-to-end’ and socio-ecological models can potentially inform planning, in both Australia and the Pacific region, about how best to build resilience to climate change. In this context, the importance of well directed data-collection programs is also emphasised. Lessons from this region, which is advanced with regard to modelling approaches, can guide increased use of models to test options for managing aquatic resources worldwide.

EDITOR'S CHOICE: Evaluating marine spatial closures with conflicting fisheries and conservation objectives

Summary Spatial management is used extensively in natural resource management to address sustainability and biodiversity issues, for example through declaration of terrestrial National Parks and marine protected areas (MPAs). Spatial management is used also to optimize yields or protect key parts of the life cycle of species that are utilized (hunted, farmed or fished), for example through rotational harvesting. To evaluate the effectiveness of marine spatial closures with conflicting fisheries and conservation objectives, a series of marine fisheries closures are here analysed using an integrative modelling tool known as management strategy evaluation (MSE). This modelling framework combines a food web model of a tropical ecosystem fished by a prawn (shrimp) fishery that emulates the resource being managed, together with the present management system and risk-based tools of fishing the prawn species at maximum economic yield. A series of spatial closures are designed and tested with the aim of investigating trade-offs among biodiversity (MPA), benthic impacts, ecosystem function, key species at risk to fishing, economic and sustainability objectives. Synthesis and applications. This paper illustrates that existing tools often available in actively managed fisheries can be linked together into an effective management strategy evaluation framework. Spatial closures tended to succeed with respect to their specific design objective, but this benefit did not necessarily flow to other broad-scale objectives. This demonstrates that there is no single management tool which satisfies all objectives, and that a suite of management tools is needed.

RECOVERY OF DURVILLAEA ANTARCTICA (DURVILLEALES) INSIDE AND OUTSIDE LAS CRUCES MARINE RESERVE, CHILE

We present the results for over two decades of monitoring on intertidal food-gatherers and the population of the low rocky shore dweller kelp Durvillaea antarctica, a short-distance disperser, inside and outside the no-take marine reserve, Estacion Costera de Investigaciones Marinas (ECIM), at Las Cruces, central Chile. It was hypothesized that protection of an initially extremely depleted population would recover by recolonizing first the no-take area and then adjacent non-protected (exploited) areas. We found that recovery of D. antarctica occurred slowly inside ECIM, with increase in density and biomass, of up to three orders of magnitude as compared to an adjacent non-protected area, which showed approximately 2-yr delay. These results suggest that the kelp population inside ECIM was likely regulated via intraspecific competition, which did not occur outside. Results showed no evidence for juvenile vs. adult density dependence other than a weak relationship for the central area of ECIM. These findings also suggest that the population recovery and cross-boundary seeding subsides affected the population dynamics. Understanding these dynamics may enhance management and conservation policies. Our work highlights the critical value of baseline and long-term comparative studies in marine no-take protected and non-protected areas for understanding how population processes respond to human and conservation practices.

A quantitative metric to identify critical elements within seafood supply networks

A theoretical basis is required for comparing key features and critical elements in wild fisheries and aquaculture supply chains under a changing climate. Here we develop a new quantitative metric that is analogous to indices used to analyse food-webs and identify key species. The Supply Chain Index (SCI) identifies critical elements as those elements with large throughput rates, as well as greater connectivity. The sum of the scores for a supply chain provides a single metric that roughly captures both the resilience and connectedness of a supply chain. Standardised scores can facilitate cross-comparisons both under current conditions as well as under a changing climate. Identification of key elements along the supply chain may assist in informing adaptation strategies to reduce anticipated future risks posed by climate change. The SCI also provides information on the relative stability of different supply chains based on whether there is a fairly even spread in the individual scores of the top few key elements, compared with a more critical dependence on a few key individual supply chain elements. We use as a case study the Australian southern rock lobster Jasus edwardsii fishery, which is challenged by a number of climate change drivers such as impacts on recruitment and growth due to changes in large-scale and local oceanographic features. The SCI identifies airports, processors and Chinese consumers as the key elements in the lobster supply chain that merit attention to enhance stability and potentially enable growth. We also apply the index to an additional four real-world Australian commercial fishery and two aquaculture industry supply chains to highlight the utility of a systematic method for describing supply chains. Overall, our simple methodological approach to empirically-based supply chain research provides an objective method for comparing the resilience of supply chains and highlighting components that may be critical.

Facing the wave of change: stakeholder perspectives on climate adaptation for Australian seafood supply chains

Climate change is one of the most important issues confronting the sustainable supply of seafood, with projections suggesting major effects on wild and farmed fisheries worldwide. While climate change has been a consideration for Australian fisheries and aquaculture management, emphasis in both research and adaptation effort has been at the production end of supply chains—impacts further along the chain have been overlooked to date. A holistic biophysical and socio-economic system view of seafood industries, as represented by end-to-end supply chains, may lead to an additional set of options in the face of climate change, thus maximizing opportunities for improved fishery profitability, while also reducing the potential for maladaptation. In this paper, we explore Australian seafood industry stakeholder perspectives on potential options for adaptation along seafood supply chains based on future potential scenarios. Stakeholders, representing wild capture and aquaculture industries, provided a range of actions targeting different stages of the supply chain. Overall, proposed strategies were predominantly related to the production end of the supply chain, suggesting that greater attention in developing adaptation options is needed at post-production stages. However, there are chain-wide adaptation strategies that can present win–win scenarios, where commercial objectives beyond adaptation can also be addressed alongside direct or indirect impacts of climate. Likewise, certain adaptation strategies in place at one stage of the chain may have varying implications on other stages of the chain. These findings represent an important step in understanding the role of supply chains in effective adaptation of fisheries and aquaculture industries to climate change.

The Coral Sea: Physical Environment, Ecosystem Status and Biodiversity Assets

The Coral Sea, located at the southwestern rim of the Pacific Ocean, is the only tropical marginal sea where human impacts remain relatively minor. Patterns and processes identified within the region have global relevance as a baseline for understanding impacts in more disturbed tropical locations. Despite 70 years of documented research, the Coral Sea has been relatively neglected, with a slower rate of increase in publications over the past 20 years than total marine research globally. We review current knowledge of the Coral Sea to provide an overview of regional geology, oceanography, ecology and fisheries. Interactions between physical features and biological assemblages influence ecological processes and the direction and strength of connectivity among Coral Sea ecosystems. To inform management effectively, we will need to fill some major knowledge gaps, including geographic gaps in sampling and a lack of integration of research themes, which hinder the understanding of most ecosystem processes.

Workshop on the ecosystem and fisheries of the Coral Sea: an Australian perspective on research and management

This report summarizes a workshop on the Coral Sea to determine key research findings and identify the research gaps needed to support sustainable management of a proposed Coral Sea Marine Reserve. Key research questions included determining the connectivity of apex predators with the broader southwest Pacific Ocean, and assessing the regions’ biodiversity in relation to seabed topography and oceanographic processes. The workshop concluded noting the importance of engaging surrounding countries in maintaining the sustainability and uniqueness of the Coral Sea.

Revisiting "success" and "failure" of marine protected areas: a conservation scientist perspective

Marine protected areas (MPAs) form the cornerstone of marine conservation. Identifying which factors contribute to their success or failure is crucial considering the international conservation targets for 2020 and the limited funds generally available for marine conservation. We identified common factors of success and/or failure of MPA effectiveness using peer-reviewed publications and first-hand expert knowledge for 27 case studies around the world. We found that stakeholder engagement was considered to be the most important factor affecting MPA success, and equally, its absence, was the most important factor influencing failure. Conversely, while some factors were identified as critical for success, their absence was not considered a driver of failure, and vice versa. This mismatch provided the impetus for considering these factors more critically. Bearing in mind that most MPAs have multiple objectives, including non-biological, this highlights the need for the development and adoption of standardized effectiveness metrics, besides biological considerations, to measure factors contributing to the success or failure of MPAs to reach their objectives. Considering our conclusions, we suggest the development of specific protocols for the assessment of stakeholder engagement, the role of leadership, the capacity of enforcement and compliance with MPAs objectives. Moreover, factors defining the success and failure of MPAs should be assessed not only by technical experts and the relevant authorities, but also by other stakeholder groups whose compliance is critical for the successful functioning of an MPA. These factors should be considered along with appropriate ecological, social, and economic data and then incorporated into adaptive management to improve MPA effectiveness.