Efforts to protect precious marine biodiversity by combining science and local knowledge are difficult but can work, reports Naomi Antony.
Along the coastline of Fiji, threatened fishing communities have been combining the ancient and the new in their fight to conserve precious marine resources.
Together with traditions remembered from centuries ago and community approaches to marine management, they are harnessing modern science to regain their livelihoods, and contribute to international efforts to safeguard the oceans.
But finding a balance between the local and the scientific has proved tricky. Without science, communities risk pursuing practices that have little long-term impact. But too much science can trample on a community's way of doing things — destroying the morale that lies at the heart of local conservation.
Read more: http://www.environmental-expert.com/articles/old-and-new-knowledge-combine-to-protect-fiji-s-fish-281478
Showing posts with label marine biodiversity. Show all posts
Showing posts with label marine biodiversity. Show all posts
Saturday, February 18, 2012
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Seas around Canna rich in unusual marine wildlife
Largest area of fan mussels in UK
February 2012: The seas around the island of Canna on the west coast of Scotland are unusually rich in marine wildlife, according to a report published by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH).
A survey carried out by marine biologists from SNH and Marine Scotland in 2010 revealed species and habitats of high conservation value in the Sound of Canna, a steep sided channel that runs between the islands of Canna and Rum. The underwater landscape of rock walls, glacial moraines, boulder piles and sheltered areas of mud and sand provide a wide variety of wildlife habitats.
An area of rare fan mussels, first spotted in 2009, has now been confirmed as the largest in UK waters. With well over a hundred mussels covering more than 170 hectares, it was much bigger than originally expected. Once common around Britain's coasts, only a handful of scattered individuals have been recorded in the past 20 years, making them one of the UK's most endangered shellfish.
'We are surprised and excited by what we found'Northern feather stars, an animal with several feather-like arms used for swimming and catching food, were found on deep sediment at both entrances to the channel. Burrowed mud, an internationally important habitat that is home to burrowing animals and the nationally scarce sea pen, covers much of the seabed.
And excellent examples of northern sea fan and deep sponge communities were found on the cliffs around the nearby island of Sanday, on deep rock outcrops and on the floor of the Sound.
Laura Clark, SNH's project manager for the Canna survey said: ‘Until the discovery of the fan mussels during a routine survey a couple of years ago, the Sound of Canna attracted relatively little attention from marine biologists.
'It's great to see this huge variety of marine life in such a small area'‘What we found when we returned to survey the area in detail surprised and excited everyone involved, particularly the extent of the fan mussel bed. It was great to find such a huge variety of marine life in such a small area.'
The survey is one of several which have taken place around Scotland since 2010, to better understand the distribution and quality of marine wildlife in Scottish waters. They are part of an extensive programme of work carried out by Marine Scotland, the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC), SNH and Historic Scotland. The information gathered will be used to advise Scottish Ministers on potential locations for marine protected areas, helping Scotland meet international commitments to create a network of sites in Scottish waters.
Friday, February 10, 2012
Researcher Finds Surprisingly Low Fish Biodiversity in the Earth's Oceans
John J. Wiens studied the relative paucity of species diversity in the oceans in an upcoming paper in the ‘Proceedings of the Royal Society
Newswise — STONY BROOK, N.Y., Embargoed for release on Tuesday, February 7, 2012 at 7pm EST – A Stony Brook University researcher has found that, contrary to popular belief, there are not plenty of fish in the sea.
In an article entitled “Why are there so few fish in the sea?,” published on-line this week in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B, John J. Wiens, Ph.D., an Associate Professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolution at Stony Brook University, addresses why the oceans contain only 15-25 percent of all of Earth's species even though they cover about 70 percent of Earth’s surface.
Dr. Wiens and student Greta Carrete Vega examined the evolutionary and ecological causes of the low species numbers of marine environments by studying the biodiversity of ray-finned fish, the most species rich group of marine vertebrates, containing 96 percent of all fish species. They performed analyses using evolutionary trees based on molecular data and fossils, and using a large database on the habitats of nearly all living fish species.
The study found a surprising difference in diversity between freshwater and saltwater habitats.
“There are more fish species in freshwater than in saltwater habitats, despite the much greater area and volume of the oceans,” he said, noting that freshwater environments occupy only about 2 percent of the Earth’s surface. “More remarkably, our results suggest that most marine fish alive today are descended from freshwater ancestors (even though fish and animals in general first evolved in the oceans).”
The authors hypothesized that extinctions in marine habitats, hundreds of millions of years ago, may help explain the low present-day diversity of marine fish.
“Our results suggest that ancient extinctions in the marine environment may have wiped out the earliest ray-finned fishes living in the oceans, that the oceans were then recolonized from freshwater habitats, and that most marine fish species living today are descended from that recolonization (leaving less time for biodiversity to build up in the oceans),” he said. “This pattern of ancient extinction and more recent recolonization may help explain why the oceans are now so species-poor, even for fish.”
In an article entitled “Why are there so few fish in the sea?,” published on-line this week in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B, John J. Wiens, Ph.D., an Associate Professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolution at Stony Brook University, addresses why the oceans contain only 15-25 percent of all of Earth's species even though they cover about 70 percent of Earth’s surface.
Dr. Wiens and student Greta Carrete Vega examined the evolutionary and ecological causes of the low species numbers of marine environments by studying the biodiversity of ray-finned fish, the most species rich group of marine vertebrates, containing 96 percent of all fish species. They performed analyses using evolutionary trees based on molecular data and fossils, and using a large database on the habitats of nearly all living fish species.
The study found a surprising difference in diversity between freshwater and saltwater habitats.
“There are more fish species in freshwater than in saltwater habitats, despite the much greater area and volume of the oceans,” he said, noting that freshwater environments occupy only about 2 percent of the Earth’s surface. “More remarkably, our results suggest that most marine fish alive today are descended from freshwater ancestors (even though fish and animals in general first evolved in the oceans).”
The authors hypothesized that extinctions in marine habitats, hundreds of millions of years ago, may help explain the low present-day diversity of marine fish.
“Our results suggest that ancient extinctions in the marine environment may have wiped out the earliest ray-finned fishes living in the oceans, that the oceans were then recolonized from freshwater habitats, and that most marine fish species living today are descended from that recolonization (leaving less time for biodiversity to build up in the oceans),” he said. “This pattern of ancient extinction and more recent recolonization may help explain why the oceans are now so species-poor, even for fish.”
Friday, November 19, 2010
Shark sanctuary declared in eastern Indonesia
JAKARTA — Indonesia has declared a vast sanctuary for sharks, turtles and manta rays in a region known as one of the world's richest sources of marine biodiversity, officials and conservationists said Tuesday.
The sanctuary covers 46,000 square kilometres (17,760 square miles) of waters around the Raja Ampat islands in eastern Indonesia, part of the so-called Coral Triangle region of Southeast Asia.
Sharks, manta rays, mobulas, dugongs and turtles are fully protected within the sanctuary, and destructive practices including reef bombing and the aquarium fish trade are banned, local officials said.
"Sharks, as apex predators, play a vital role in regulating the health of important commercial fish species, population balance, and coral reefs," conservation group Shark Savers and the Misool Eco Resort, which are supporting the sanctuary, said in a statement.
"Despite this importance, up to 73 million sharks are killed annually with some shark populations declining by as much as 90 percent, mostly for shark fin soup.
"In Raja Ampat, three fourths of its shark species are threatened with local extinction."
Peter Knights, executive director of US-based conservation group WildAid which is backing the project, said: "It?s tragic that so much of Raja Ampat?s biological treasure is destined for consumers who are unaware of the impact.
"Sharks are being killed for their fins, mantas are being killed for their gills, and rare reef fish are being caught for aquariums," he said.
Raja Ampat marine and fishery office head Yohanis Bercmans Rahawaryn could not provide figures on shark numbers in the area, but said their numbers had "dropped steadily in the past few years".
"Divers rarely find big sharks around Raja Ampat. That's the main indicator," he said.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5ien0iGs35IASdRlJuBZjCJfm80Yg?docId=CNG.d2b96042d79e62832e6348438c194968.21
The sanctuary covers 46,000 square kilometres (17,760 square miles) of waters around the Raja Ampat islands in eastern Indonesia, part of the so-called Coral Triangle region of Southeast Asia.
Sharks, manta rays, mobulas, dugongs and turtles are fully protected within the sanctuary, and destructive practices including reef bombing and the aquarium fish trade are banned, local officials said.
"Sharks, as apex predators, play a vital role in regulating the health of important commercial fish species, population balance, and coral reefs," conservation group Shark Savers and the Misool Eco Resort, which are supporting the sanctuary, said in a statement.
"Despite this importance, up to 73 million sharks are killed annually with some shark populations declining by as much as 90 percent, mostly for shark fin soup.
"In Raja Ampat, three fourths of its shark species are threatened with local extinction."
Peter Knights, executive director of US-based conservation group WildAid which is backing the project, said: "It?s tragic that so much of Raja Ampat?s biological treasure is destined for consumers who are unaware of the impact.
"Sharks are being killed for their fins, mantas are being killed for their gills, and rare reef fish are being caught for aquariums," he said.
Raja Ampat marine and fishery office head Yohanis Bercmans Rahawaryn could not provide figures on shark numbers in the area, but said their numbers had "dropped steadily in the past few years".
"Divers rarely find big sharks around Raja Ampat. That's the main indicator," he said.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5ien0iGs35IASdRlJuBZjCJfm80Yg?docId=CNG.d2b96042d79e62832e6348438c194968.21
Shark sanctuary declared in eastern Indonesia
JAKARTA — Indonesia has declared a vast sanctuary for sharks, turtles and manta rays in a region known as one of the world's richest sources of marine biodiversity, officials and conservationists said Tuesday.
The sanctuary covers 46,000 square kilometres (17,760 square miles) of waters around the Raja Ampat islands in eastern Indonesia, part of the so-called Coral Triangle region of Southeast Asia.
Sharks, manta rays, mobulas, dugongs and turtles are fully protected within the sanctuary, and destructive practices including reef bombing and the aquarium fish trade are banned, local officials said.
"Sharks, as apex predators, play a vital role in regulating the health of important commercial fish species, population balance, and coral reefs," conservation group Shark Savers and the Misool Eco Resort, which are supporting the sanctuary, said in a statement.
"Despite this importance, up to 73 million sharks are killed annually with some shark populations declining by as much as 90 percent, mostly for shark fin soup.
"In Raja Ampat, three fourths of its shark species are threatened with local extinction."
Peter Knights, executive director of US-based conservation group WildAid which is backing the project, said: "It?s tragic that so much of Raja Ampat?s biological treasure is destined for consumers who are unaware of the impact.
"Sharks are being killed for their fins, mantas are being killed for their gills, and rare reef fish are being caught for aquariums," he said.
Raja Ampat marine and fishery office head Yohanis Bercmans Rahawaryn could not provide figures on shark numbers in the area, but said their numbers had "dropped steadily in the past few years".
"Divers rarely find big sharks around Raja Ampat. That's the main indicator," he said.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5ien0iGs35IASdRlJuBZjCJfm80Yg?docId=CNG.d2b96042d79e62832e6348438c194968.21
The sanctuary covers 46,000 square kilometres (17,760 square miles) of waters around the Raja Ampat islands in eastern Indonesia, part of the so-called Coral Triangle region of Southeast Asia.
Sharks, manta rays, mobulas, dugongs and turtles are fully protected within the sanctuary, and destructive practices including reef bombing and the aquarium fish trade are banned, local officials said.
"Sharks, as apex predators, play a vital role in regulating the health of important commercial fish species, population balance, and coral reefs," conservation group Shark Savers and the Misool Eco Resort, which are supporting the sanctuary, said in a statement.
"Despite this importance, up to 73 million sharks are killed annually with some shark populations declining by as much as 90 percent, mostly for shark fin soup.
"In Raja Ampat, three fourths of its shark species are threatened with local extinction."
Peter Knights, executive director of US-based conservation group WildAid which is backing the project, said: "It?s tragic that so much of Raja Ampat?s biological treasure is destined for consumers who are unaware of the impact.
"Sharks are being killed for their fins, mantas are being killed for their gills, and rare reef fish are being caught for aquariums," he said.
Raja Ampat marine and fishery office head Yohanis Bercmans Rahawaryn could not provide figures on shark numbers in the area, but said their numbers had "dropped steadily in the past few years".
"Divers rarely find big sharks around Raja Ampat. That's the main indicator," he said.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5ien0iGs35IASdRlJuBZjCJfm80Yg?docId=CNG.d2b96042d79e62832e6348438c194968.21
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