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Dunham A, Iacarella JC, Hunter KL, Davies SC, Dudas S, Gale KSP, Rubidge E, Archer SK. Conserving ecosystem integrity: Ecological theory as a guide for marine protected area monitoring. ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS : A PUBLICATION OF THE ECOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2024; 34:e3005. [PMID: 38923678 DOI: 10.1002/eap.3005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2023] [Revised: 09/26/2023] [Accepted: 04/23/2024] [Indexed: 06/28/2024]
Abstract
Global policies increasingly focus on the importance of maintaining or improving the integrity of ecosystems, but defining, assessing, and monitoring integrity in marine protected areas (MPAs) remains a challenge. In this paper, we conceptualized ecological integrity along dimensions of heterogeneity and stability containing seven components: physical structure, diversity, function, persistence, resistance, resilience, and natural variability. Through a structured literature search, we identified indicators and metrics used for quantifying ecosystem status components in the marine environment, then reviewed MPA management plans worldwide for inclusion of these components. We evaluated 202 papers applying 83 ecological indicators built from 72 metrics. Ecosystem components were most comprehensively addressed by metrics of taxa presence, organisms count, and area occupied by benthic organisms, and community structure, biomass, and percent cover indicators. Of the 557 MPA management plans we reviewed globally, 93% used at least one ecosystem status term or its synonym in an ecologically relevant context, but 39% did not address any components of stability. In particular, resistance was mentioned in only 1% of management plans, but in some cases it may be inferred from indicators and metrics used to track the best addressed component in management plans, diversity. Plans for MPAs with both an ecological/biological purpose and a research and education purpose contained ecosystem status terms more frequently than other plans, suggesting that engagement with the scientific community may have improved the application of these terms. An improved understanding of how to operationalize and measure ecological integrity can help MPA monitoring and management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anya Dunham
- Pacific Biological Station, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Josephine C Iacarella
- Institute of Ocean Sciences, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Sidney, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Karen L Hunter
- Pacific Biological Station, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Sarah C Davies
- Pacific Biological Station, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Sarah Dudas
- Pacific Biological Station, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Katie S P Gale
- Institute of Ocean Sciences, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Sidney, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Emily Rubidge
- Institute of Ocean Sciences, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Sidney, British Columbia, Canada
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Francis FT, Burke L, Marliave J, Schultz J, Borden L, Weltman A, Dunham A. Fishing damage to cloud sponges may lead to losses in associated fish communities in Pacific Canada. MARINE ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2024; 197:106448. [PMID: 38518407 DOI: 10.1016/j.marenvres.2024.106448] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2023] [Revised: 02/21/2024] [Accepted: 03/11/2024] [Indexed: 03/24/2024]
Abstract
Glass sponge gardens are important biogenic habitats that support fish communities in Pacific Canada. However, glass sponges (class Hexactinellida) are delicate and susceptible to damage from fishing gear such as downriggers. In this study we document changes in a fish community before -and after damage from a presumed fishing event that resulted in a reduction of 58.9% of the available sponge habitat in a small cloud sponge garden in British Columbia. This habitat loss coincided with a decline of 76.9% of the relative abundance of rockfish, an economically important group of fishes, at the garden. This decline was particularly pronounced in small size classes with the disappearance of juvenile rockfish after the sponge loss. Although based on a single site, this is the first documentation of how anthropogenic damage in a sponge aggregation may impact the associated fish community. Damage from fishing gear is likely most pronounced in small sponge aggregations, like nearshore gardens, where a single event may result in a disproportionately large loss of available fish habitat. Slow regrowth of sponges suggests the habitat availability may be permanently altered at these sites and can coincide with shifts in the localized fish community that may be long lasting on a local scale. Currently sponge gardens do not have any direct spatial protections in the Pacific Northwest, and this work highlights the importance of considering them in future protection initiatives.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fiona T Francis
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Institute of Ocean Sciences, 9860 West Saanich Road, Sidney, British Columbia, V8L 5T5, Canada.
| | - Lily Burke
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Institute of Ocean Sciences, 9860 West Saanich Road, Sidney, British Columbia, V8L 5T5, Canada
| | - Jeff Marliave
- Raincoast Conservation Foundation, PO Box 2429, Sidney, British Columbia, V8L 3Y3, Canada
| | - Jessica Schultz
- Department of Integrative Biology, Summerlee Science Complex, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, N1G 2W1, Canada; Centre for Biodiversity Genomics, 50 Stone Road East, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, N1G 2W1, Canada
| | - Laura Borden
- Dynamic Ocean Consulting Ltd., 1490 Union Street, Port Moody, British Columbia, V3H 3X5, Canada
| | - Amanda Weltman
- Environment and Climate Change, Government of the Northwest Territories, Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, X1A 2L9, Canada
| | - Anya Dunham
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Pacific Biological Station, 3190 Hammond Bay Road, Nanaimo, BC, V9T 6N7, Canada
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Baco AR, Ross R, Althaus F, Amon D, Bridges AEH, Brix S, Buhl-Mortensen P, Colaco A, Carreiro-Silva M, Clark MR, Du Preez C, Franken ML, Gianni M, Gonzalez-Mirelis G, Hourigan T, Howell K, Levin LA, Lindsay DJ, Molodtsova TN, Morgan N, Morato T, Mejia-Mercado BE, O’Sullivan D, Pearman T, Price D, Robert K, Robson L, Rowden AA, Taylor J, Taylor M, Victorero L, Watling L, Williams A, Xavier JR, Yesson C. Towards a scientific community consensus on designating Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems from imagery. PeerJ 2023; 11:e16024. [PMID: 37846312 PMCID: PMC10576969 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.16024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2022] [Accepted: 08/13/2023] [Indexed: 10/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Management of deep-sea fisheries in areas beyond national jurisdiction by Regional Fisheries Management Organizations/Arrangements (RFMO/As) requires identification of areas with Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems (VMEs). Currently, fisheries data, including trawl and longline bycatch data, are used by many RFMO/As to inform the identification of VMEs. However, the collection of such data creates impacts and there is a need to collect non-invasive data for VME identification and monitoring purposes. Imagery data from scientific surveys satisfies this requirement, but there currently is no established framework for identifying VMEs from images. Thus, the goal of this study was to bring together a large international team to determine current VME assessment protocols and establish preliminary global consensus guidelines for identifying VMEs from images. An initial assessment showed a lack of consistency among RFMO/A regions regarding what is considered a VME indicator taxon, and hence variability in how VMEs might be defined. In certain cases, experts agreed that a VME could be identified from a single image, most often in areas of scleractinian reefs, dense octocoral gardens, multiple VME species' co-occurrence, and chemosynthetic ecosystems. A decision flow chart is presented that gives practical interpretation of the FAO criteria for single images. To further evaluate steps of the flow chart related to density, data were compiled to assess whether scientists perceived similar density thresholds across regions. The range of observed densities and the density values considered to be VMEs varied considerably by taxon, but in many cases, there was a statistical difference in what experts considered to be a VME compared to images not considered a VME. Further work is required to develop an areal extent index, to include a measure of confidence, and to increase our understanding of what levels of density and diversity correspond to key ecosystem functions for VME indicator taxa. Based on our results, the following recommendations are made: 1. There is a need to establish a global consensus on which taxa are VME indicators. 2. RFMO/As should consider adopting guidelines that use imagery surveys as an alternative (or complement) to using bycatch and trawl surveys for designating VMEs. 3. Imagery surveys should also be included in Impact Assessments. And 4. All industries that impact the seafloor, not just fisheries, should use imagery surveys to detect and identify VMEs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amy R. Baco
- Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, United States
| | | | | | - Diva Amon
- SpeSeas, D’Abadie, Trinidad and Tobago
- Marine Science Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California, United States
| | - Amelia E. H. Bridges
- School of Biological and Marine Science, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, United Kingdom
| | - Saskia Brix
- Senckenberg am Meer, German Center for Marine Biodiversity Research (DZMB), Senckenberg Nature Research Society, Hamburg, Germany
| | | | - Ana Colaco
- Okeanos-University of the Azores, Horta, Portugal
| | | | - Malcolm R. Clark
- National Institute of Water & Atmospheric Research, Wellington, New Zealand
| | - Cherisse Du Preez
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Sidney, Canada
- University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
| | | | | | | | - Thomas Hourigan
- National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration, Washington, D.C., United States
| | - Kerry Howell
- School of Biological and Marine Science, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, United Kingdom
| | - Lisa A. Levin
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, California, United States
| | - Dhugal J. Lindsay
- Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, Yokosuka, Japan
| | | | - Nicole Morgan
- Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, United States
| | - Telmo Morato
- Okeanos-University of the Azores, Horta, Portugal
| | - Beatriz E. Mejia-Mercado
- Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, United States
| | | | - Tabitha Pearman
- South Atlantic Environmental Research Institute, Stanley, Falkland Islands
| | - David Price
- Okeanos-University of the Azores, Horta, Portugal
- The National Oceanography Centre, Southampton, United Kingdom
- University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom
| | - Katleen Robert
- Fisheries and Marine Institute of Memorial University, St. John’s, Canada
| | - Laura Robson
- Joint Nature Conservation Committee, Peterborough, United Kingdom
| | - Ashley A. Rowden
- National Institute of Water & Atmospheric Research, Wellington, New Zealand
- Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand
| | - James Taylor
- Senckenberg am Meer, German Center for Marine Biodiversity Research (DZMB), Senckenberg Nature Research Society, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Michelle Taylor
- School of Life Sciences, University of Essex, Essex, United Kingdom
| | - Lissette Victorero
- Norwegian Institute for Water Research, Bergen, Norway
- University of Aveiro, CESAM, Aveiro, Portugal
| | - Les Watling
- University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, United States
| | | | - Joana R. Xavier
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
- CIIMAR, Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research, CIIMAR, University of Porto, Matsosinhos, Portugal
| | - Chris Yesson
- Zoological Society of London, London, United Kingdom
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Reid M, Collins ML, Hall SRJ, Mason E, McGee G, Frid A. Protecting our coast for everyone's future: Indigenous and scientific knowledge support marine spatial protections proposed by Central Coast First Nations in Pacific Canada. PEOPLE AND NATURE 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/pan3.10380] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Mike Reid
- Heiltsuk Integrated Resource Management Department Haíłzaqv Nation Wágḷísḷa British Columbia Canada
| | | | | | - Ernest Mason
- Kitasoo Xai'xais Fisheries Kitasoo Xai'xais Nation Klemtu British Columbia Canada
| | - Gord McGee
- Central Coast Indigenous Resource Alliance Campbell River British Columbia Canada
| | - Alejandro Frid
- Central Coast Indigenous Resource Alliance Campbell River British Columbia Canada
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Simon ADF, Adamczyk EM, Basman A, Chu JWF, Gartner HN, Fletcher K, Gibbs CJ, Gibbs DM, Gilmore SR, Harbo RM, Harris LH, Humphrey E, Lamb A, Lambert P, McDaniel N, Scott J, Starzomski BM. Toward an atlas of Salish Sea biodiversity: the flora and fauna of Galiano Island, British Columbia, Canada. Part I. Marine zoology. Biodivers Data J 2022; 10:e76050. [PMID: 35437414 PMCID: PMC8930920 DOI: 10.3897/bdj.10.e76050] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2021] [Accepted: 01/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Based on records dating from 1859 to 2021, we provide an overview of the marine animal diversity reported for Galiano Island, British Columbia, Canada. More than 650 taxa are represented by 20,000 species occurrence records in this curated dataset, which includes dive records documented through the Pacific Marine Life Surveys, museum voucher specimens, ecological data and crowd-sourced observations from the BC Cetacean Sightings Network and iNaturalist. New information We describe Galiano Island's marine animal diversity in relation to the Salish Sea's overall biodiversity and quantify the proportional contributions of different types of sampling effort to our current local knowledge. Overviews are provided for each taxonomic group in a format intended to be accessible to amateur naturalists interested in furthering research into the region's marine biodiversity. In summary, we find that the Pacific Marine Life Surveys, a regional community science diving initiative, account for 60% of novel records reported for Galiano Island. Voucher specimens account for 19% and crowd-sourced biodiversity data 18% of novel records, respectively, with the remaining 3% of reports coming from other sources. These findings shed light on the complementarity of different types of sampling effort and demonstrate the potential for community science to contribute to the global biodiversity research community. We present a biodiversity informatics framework that is designed to enable these practices by supporting collaboration among researchers and communities in the collection, curation and dissemination of biodiversity data.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew D. F. Simon
- Institute for Multidisciplinary Ecological Research in the Salish Sea, Galiano Island, CanadaInstitute for Multidisciplinary Ecological Research in the Salish SeaGaliano IslandCanada
| | - Emily M. Adamczyk
- Institute for Multidisciplinary Ecological Research in the Salish Sea, Galiano Island, CanadaInstitute for Multidisciplinary Ecological Research in the Salish SeaGaliano IslandCanada
- University of British Columbia, Vancouver, CanadaUniversity of British ColumbiaVancouverCanada
| | - Antranig Basman
- Institute for Multidisciplinary Ecological Research in the Salish Sea, Galiano Island, CanadaInstitute for Multidisciplinary Ecological Research in the Salish SeaGaliano IslandCanada
| | - Jackson W. F. Chu
- University of Victoria, Victoria, CanadaUniversity of VictoriaVictoriaCanada
| | - Heidi N. Gartner
- Royal British Columbia Museum, Victoria, CanadaRoyal British Columbia MuseumVictoriaCanada
| | - Karin Fletcher
- Port Orchard 98366, Port Orchard, United States of AmericaPort Orchard 98366Port OrchardUnited States of America
| | - Charles J. Gibbs
- Pacific Marine Life Surveys, Port Coquitlam, CanadaPacific Marine Life SurveysPort CoquitlamCanada
| | - Donna M. Gibbs
- Pacific Marine Life Surveys, Port Coquitlam, CanadaPacific Marine Life SurveysPort CoquitlamCanada
| | - Scott R. Gilmore
- 7494 Andrea Cres, Lantzville, Canada7494 Andrea CresLantzvilleCanada
| | - Rick M. Harbo
- Royal British Columbia Museum, Victoria, CanadaRoyal British Columbia MuseumVictoriaCanada
| | - Leslie H. Harris
- Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, United States of AmericaNatural History Museum of Los Angeles CountyLos AngelesUnited States of America
| | - Elaine Humphrey
- Institute for Multidisciplinary Ecological Research in the Salish Sea, Galiano Island, CanadaInstitute for Multidisciplinary Ecological Research in the Salish SeaGaliano IslandCanada
- University of Victoria, Victoria, CanadaUniversity of VictoriaVictoriaCanada
| | - Andy Lamb
- Pacific Marine Life Surveys, Port Coquitlam, CanadaPacific Marine Life SurveysPort CoquitlamCanada
| | - Philip Lambert
- Royal British Columbia Museum, Victoria, CanadaRoyal British Columbia MuseumVictoriaCanada
| | - Neil McDaniel
- McDaniel Photography, Vancouver, CanadaMcDaniel PhotographyVancouverCanada
| | - Jessica Scott
- Ocean Wise, Vancouver, CanadaOcean WiseVancouverCanada
| | - Brian M. Starzomski
- University of Victoria, Victoria, CanadaUniversity of VictoriaVictoriaCanada
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6
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Frid A, McGreer M, Wilson KL, Du Preez C, Blaine T, Norgard T. Hotspots for rockfishes, structural corals, and large-bodied sponges along the central coast of Pacific Canada. Sci Rep 2021; 11:21944. [PMID: 34753952 PMCID: PMC8578610 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-00791-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2021] [Accepted: 10/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Biological hotspots are places with outstanding biodiversity features, and their delineation is essential to the design of marine protected areas (MPAs). For the Central Coast of Canada's Northern Shelf Bioregion, where an MPA network is being developed, we identified hotspots for structural corals and large-bodied sponges, which are foundation species vulnerable to bottom contact fisheries, and for Sebastidae, a fish family which includes species that are long-lived (> 100 years), overexploited, evolutionary distinctive, and at high trophic levels. Using 11 years of survey data that spanned from inland fjords to oceanic waters, we derived hotspot indices that accounted for species characteristics and abundances and examined hotspot distribution across depths and oceanographic subregions. The results highlight previously undocumented hotspot distributions, thereby informing the placement of MPAs for which high levels of protection are warranted. Given the vulnerability of the taxa that we examined to cumulative fishery impacts, prospective MPAs derived from our data should be considered for interim protection measures during the protracted period between final network design and the enactment of MPA legislations. These recommendations reflect our scientific data, which are only one way of understanding the seascape. Our surveys did not cover many locations known to Indigenous peoples as biologically important. Consequently, Indigenous knowledge should also contribute substantially to the design of the MPA network.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alejandro Frid
- Central Coast Indigenous Resource Alliance, Campbell River, BC, Canada. .,School of Environmental Studies, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada.
| | - Madeleine McGreer
- Central Coast Indigenous Resource Alliance, Campbell River, BC, Canada
| | - Kyle L Wilson
- Central Coast Indigenous Resource Alliance, Campbell River, BC, Canada
| | - Cherisse Du Preez
- Institute of Ocean Sciences, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Sidney, BC, Canada
| | - Tristan Blaine
- Central Coast Indigenous Resource Alliance, Campbell River, BC, Canada
| | - Tammy Norgard
- Pacific Biological Station, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Nanaimo, BC, Canada
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Stevenson A, Archer SK, Schultz JA, Dunham A, Marliave JB, Martone P, Harley CDG. Warming and acidification threaten glass sponge Aphrocallistes vastus pumping and reef formation. Sci Rep 2020; 10:8176. [PMID: 32424237 PMCID: PMC7235243 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-65220-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2019] [Accepted: 04/30/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The glass sponge Aphrocallistes vastus contributes to the formation of large reefs unique to the Northeast Pacific Ocean. These habitats have tremendous filtration capacity that facilitates flow of carbon between trophic levels. Their sensitivity and resilience to climate change, and thus persistence in the Anthropocene, is unknown. Here we show that ocean acidification and warming, alone and in combination have significant adverse effects on pumping capacity, contribute to irreversible tissue withdrawal, and weaken skeletal strength and stiffness of A. vastus. Within one month sponges exposed to warming (including combined treatment) ceased pumping (50–60%) and exhibited tissue withdrawal (10–25%). Thermal and acidification stress significantly reduced skeletal stiffness, and warming weakened it, potentially curtailing reef formation. Environmental data suggests conditions causing irreversible damage are possible in the field at +0.5 °C above current conditions, indicating that ongoing climate change is a serious and immediate threat to A. vastus, reef dependent communities, and potentially other glass sponges.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Stevenson
- Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, V6T 1Z4, Canada. .,Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. .,Marine Evolutionary Ecology, GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, Düsternbrooker Weg 20, 24105, Kiel, Germany.
| | - S K Archer
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Pacific Biological Station, 3190 Hammond Bay Road, Nanaimo, British Columbia, V9T 6N7, Canada.,Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium, 8124 Highway 56, Chauvin, Louisiana, 70344, USA
| | - J A Schultz
- Ocean Wise Research Institute, PO Box 3232, Vancouver, British Columbia, V6B3X8, Canada
| | - A Dunham
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Pacific Biological Station, 3190 Hammond Bay Road, Nanaimo, British Columbia, V9T 6N7, Canada
| | - J B Marliave
- Ocean Wise Research Institute, PO Box 3232, Vancouver, British Columbia, V6B3X8, Canada
| | - P Martone
- Department of Botany, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - C D G Harley
- Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, V6T 1Z4, Canada.,Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
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Loh T, Archer SK, Dunham A. Monitoring program design for data-limited marine biogenic habitats: A structured approach. Ecol Evol 2019; 9:7346-7359. [PMID: 31380055 PMCID: PMC6662303 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.5261] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2018] [Revised: 04/16/2019] [Accepted: 04/23/2019] [Indexed: 11/07/2022] Open
Abstract
Marine biogenic habitats-habitats created by living organisms-provide essential ecosystem functions and services, such as physical structuring, nutrient cycling, biodiversity support, and increases in primary, secondary, and tertiary production. With the growing trend toward ecosystem approaches to marine conservation and fisheries management, there is greater emphasis on rigorously designed habitat monitoring programs. However, such programs are challenging to design for data-limited habitats for which underlying ecosystem processes are poorly understood. To provide guidance in this area, we reviewed approaches to benthic assessments across well-studied marine biogenic habitats and identified common themes related to indicator selection, sampling methods, and survey design. Biogenic habitat monitoring efforts largely focus on the characteristics, distribution, and ecological function of foundation species, but may target other habitat-forming organisms, especially when community shifts are observed or expected, as well as proxies of habitat status, such as indicator species. Broad-scale methods cover large spatial areas and are typically used to examine the spatial configuration of habitats, whereas fine-scale methods tend to be laborious and thus restricted to small survey areas, but provide high-resolution data. Recent, emerging methods enhance the capabilities of surveying large areas at high spatial resolution and improve data processing efficiency, bridging the gap between broad- and fine-scale methods. Although sampling design selection may be limited by habitat characteristics and available resources, it is critically important to ensure appropriate matching of ecological, observational, and analytical scales. Drawing on these common themes, we propose a structured, iterative approach to designing monitoring programs for marine biogenic habitats that allows for rigorous data collection to inform management strategies, even when data and resource limitations are present. A practical application of this approach is illustrated using glass sponge reefs-a recently discovered and data-limited habitat type-as a case study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tse‐Lynn Loh
- Quest University CanadaSquamishBritish ColumbiaCanada
| | - Stephanie K. Archer
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Pacific Biological StationNanaimoBritish ColumbiaCanada
| | - Anya Dunham
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Pacific Biological StationNanaimoBritish ColumbiaCanada
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