Coastal habitat mapping of Nogas Island, for conservation and management

Glenn D. Aguilar Dr. Engr. Professor Shiela S. Villamor MS Fisheries Institute of Marine Fisheries and Oceanology College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES VISAYAS , Iniiitiati ng G GSIS usage i n a data starved , IT infrastructure deficient region to solve urgent problems Previous GIS Efforts at UP Visayas

„ Marine Transportation Safety (2002) „ Municipal Fisheries Ordinance Formulation (2003) „ Oil Spill Prediction and Response (2005, 2006) „ Coastal Zone Management and MPA (2000 to present) „ Flood Disaster Response and Mitigation (2008) Inttoductoroduction „ Nogas Island Fish Sanctuary is one of the more than 500 marine protected areas (MPAs) in the Philippines (UP-MSI et al. 2002)

10.42664766o N and 121.91532612o E; 10.41171312o N and 121.91830873o E Locatio n

Manila

Iloilo UP Visayas Inttoductoroduction

„ 1994 - established as a marine reserve and fish sanctuary by Municipal Ordinance No. 94-01 Series of 1994 UPV Productivity Studies

LARVAL & EGG DENSITIES IN GULF, 2002, 2006 (Campos et. al.)

10.80 PANAY Nogas Is. 22 21

20 10.60 national marine 23

19 reserve (UPV)

18 24 17 16 15 14 13 10.40 12 1 11 Danyugan

2 10 Private 10.20 MPA Triangle for

9 Sanctuary 3

8

4 10.00 >100 7 5 ≤100 6 Eggs = blue; ≤ 50 NEGROS ≤ 10 larvae = red 9809.80 121.80 122.00 122.20 122.40 122.60 122.80 Inttoductoroduction „ The island is unpopulated (Naval reserve til 1992, CtGdCoast Guard Sta tion, und er An in-y LGU s ince then ) frequently visited by tourists

„ 24 hectare nesting and hatching place of turtles, tbtabon bir ds an d fee ding groun d for dugongs

„ Liggyphthouse only permanent structure on island Habitats : Co ra l Reef ee Seagrass Beds Maagoesngroves Backg r oun d

„ MPA has not been strictly implemented since it has been established (blast and cyanide fishing, gathering of eggs of tabon and sea turtle, cutting of mangroves, solid wastes, damage to corals by dive boats and SCUBA divers)

„ Coral reefs and fishes assessed 2001 and 2002 (Campos 2002), no regular monitoring

„ Seagrass beds and mangrove areas survey in this study Inttoductoroduction Objectives

„ Characterize coastal habitats of NogasIsland to provide information and knowledge for management of the resources

„ Start a GIS of habitats for NogasIsland to assist decision making

„ Identify a new location of a manageable MPA in Nogas Island for the consideration of the local government Methodo l ogy

„ Data gathering and field surveys were conducted from May to December 2006

„ Participatory mapping was done by involving members of MFARMC in sketch mapping and field survey activities

„ Coral reefs, seagrasses and mangroves were surveyed adopting the methods described by English et al. (1994)

„ Due to a reported outbreak of Acanthasterplanci crown-of-thorns starfish (COTS) manta tow was done in February 2008 to survey its density and distribution and to correlate with the status of habitats

„ DDataata gatgatheredhered mmadeade intointo a database ususinging MSMS Access;Access; ArcviewArcview 33.2.2 waswas used Initial data from participating fisherfolk (Muncipal Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Management Council)

Habitats and resources in Nogas Island identified by MFARMC members. Sampling stations: benthic life forms and fis h v isual census Seagr ass ttaransects Mang r ov e tra nsects a nd p lots

Location of transect lines and plots for mangrove survey in Nogas Island. Results: Manta Tow: Live Hard Coral

Percent cover of live hard corals in Nogas Island during the manta tow survey. Results: Benthic Life forms

Dc=dead coral , Lhc=live hard coral, Lsc=live soft coral, A=abiotic, Ot=others

Percent cover of benthic lifeforms Results : Fis h Visua l Ce nsus

„ Indicator species are fishes associated with the presence and health of coralfl reefs (Chaet od ontid s, P omacanthid s and Z anclid s )

„ Target species are fishes with high commercial value which fishermen catch (Acanthurids, Caesionids, Lethrinids, Lutjanids, Nemipterids, Scarids,,g) Serranids and Siganids)

„ Others are fishes that are visually obvious in the reef belonging to major thittrophic categor ies (Apogonid s, Au los tom ids, Ba lis tids, Blenn ids, Cirrhitids, Dasyatids, Holocentids, Labrids, Microsdesmids, Monacanthids, Mullids, Muraenids, Ostracids, Pomacentrids, Pinguipedids, Pseudochromids, Scorpaenids, Tetraodontids) Results : Ree f fis h d ive rs ity

Reef fish diversity (# of species) Results : Ree f Fis h De ns ity

% Reef fish density (ind/m2) Results : Ree f fis h b io mass

% Reef fish biomass (kg/ha) Results

Th=Tha lass ia hempr ic hii, Hp=HldlHalodule p iifliinifolia, Cr=CdCymodocea ro tdttundata, Ho=HlHalop hila ova lis, Si=Syr ingo dium isoe tifo lium Seagrassbed, % cover in each transect Results : Ma ng ro ves Results : Ma ng ro ves Discussio n

„ High percentage cover of dead corals the poor condition of coral reefs; may attributed to blast fishing that existed decades ago in Nogas Island.

„ The presence of soft corals can be a sign of recovery

70. 0000 60.42 60.00

50.0041.70 40.00 32.93 30.00 % Cover 22.64 16. 5454 20.00 13.62 9.98 10.00 1.78 0.18 0.22 - dead live live abiotic others dead live live abiotic others coral hard soft coral hard soft coral coral coral coral Nogas IslandIsland (December (December 2006) 2006) San JoaquinJoaquin (November (November 2007) 2007) Discussio n

„ Low diversity of indicator species maybe the result coral reef conditions

„ Indicator fish are caught for aquarium fish trade

140 133 3 2.83 12 9.56 120 10 p) ) ) 2 pp 100 aa mm 2 8 80 5.66 6 60 45 1.03 1 4 40 31 Density (ind/ iversity (# of s

Biomass (kg/h 1.74 DD 2 20 0.06 0 0 0 Others Target Indicator Others Target Indicator Others Target Indicator GGealeaning gact activit tesies

„ Good or bad? Good intentions=?good results

„ Mangrove reforestation of seagrass beds? Conclusion and Recommendations

„ The habitats database with the GIS provides information to the policy makers to guide them in decision-making and rational management of resources.

The proposed new and viable location of MPA for Nogas Island (a) based on location of better condition of benthic lifeforms and (b) based on location of better condition of reef fish biomass. But whe n we t houg ht t hat was enough for the time being to graduate one MS student… Crown of Thorns (COTS) – spotted Feb 2008 Results o f init ia l ma nta to w

Crown-of-thorns starfish (COTS) : around 3,000 individuals counted. Conclusion and Recommendations

„ GIS has proven to be an effective and user-friendly tool in the characterization and mapping of habitats in Nogas Island.

„ Information assists the decision making of local managers for improving and preserving the habitat. (…LGU agreed provided the University sets up a Marine Laboratory there)

„ The GIS for habitats in Nogas Island developed in this study can serve as template and monitoring tool for future studies and other MPAs in the country. Further work

„ COTS removal monitoring

„ Inegration into Muncipal Fisheries Resources Management Council planning and management

„ Better tools, systems development and modeling approaches SlSalamat gid. MiSlMaramingSalamat. Thank Y ou Obrigado.