ECOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF MARINE PROTECTED AREAS EMPAFISH PROJECT BOOKLET Nº1 libro empa verde mio.FH11 29/5/08 18:22 Pgina 1 libro empa verde mio.FH11 29/5/08 18:22 Pgina 2 This publication has been developed in the framework of the project EMPAFISH (SSP8-006539) supported by the Commission of the European Communities within the Sixth Framework Programme. The views expressed in this work do not necessarily reflect those of EC or anticipates the Commission’s future policy in the area. Work Package: 1 Deliverable: D3 Dissemination Level: Public Published by: Citation Planes S., García-Charton J.A., Marcos C. & Pérez-Ruzafa A. (Coord.), 2008. Ecological effects of Atlanto-Mediterranean Marine Protected Areas in the European Union. EMPAFISH Project, Booklet nº 1. Editum. 158 pp. ISBN: 978-84-8371-723-3 Legal Deposit: Editorial Committee Ruth Higgins, Stephen Mangi, Fuensanta Salas, Philip Smith and Frédéric Vandeperre Cover photo and design Ángel Pérez Ruzafa & Concepción Marcos Available from http://www.um.es/empafish libro empa verde mio.FH11 29/5/08 18:22 Pgina 3 Project nº SSP8-006539 EMPAFISH European Marine Protected Areas as tools for Fisheries management and conservation Specific Programme “Integrating and strengthening the ERA” (6th Framework Programme), under the activity “Scientific Support to Policies” and the research priority for “Modernisation and sustainability of fisheries, including aquaculture-based production system” Ecological effects of Atlanto-Mediterranean Marine Protected Areas in the European Union Deliverable reference number: 3 Due date of deliverable: July 2005 Actual submission date: July 2006 Start date of project: 1st March 2005 Duration: 36 months Lead contractor for this deliverable: CNRS EPHE, Perpignan Revision: Final Dissemination Level PU Public X PP Restricted to other programme participants (including the Commission Services) RE Restricted to a group specified by the consortium (including the Commission Services) CO Confidential, only for members of the consortium (including the Commission Services) libro empa verde mio.FH11 29/5/08 18:22 Pgina 4 libro empa verde mio.FH11 29/5/08 18:22 Pgina 5 EMPAFISH Booklet nº 1 Ecological effects of Atlanto-Mediterranean MPAs in the EU Contents 1. Ecological processes important for marine protection 3 1.1. Ecological features of marine ecosystems affecting the biodiversity – ecosystem functioning relationship 3 1.2. Marine connectivity 3 1.3. The importance of habitat structure 4 1.4. Marine protected areas as tools for ecosystem management and conservation 4 2. Ecological effects of MPAs: a brief review 7 2.1. Reserve effect 7 2.2. Fish movement and connectivity 7 2.3. Other biological effects 8 2.4. Indirect effects 8 2.5. The interference of habitat structure 8 3. Ecological effects in EMPAFISH case studies 9 3.1. General view 9 3.2. Case studies 15 1 - Cabo de Palos - Islas Hormigas 15 2 - Tabarca 21 3 - San Antonio 25 4 - Serra Gelada - Benidorm islets 29 5 - Columbretes islands 33 6 - Anti-trawling zones (SE Spain) 37 7 - Medes islands 41 8 - Cerbère - Banyuls 47 9 - Côte Bleue (Carry-Le-Rouet & Cap Couronne) 51 10 - Sinis - Maldiventre 57 11 - Bouches de Bonifacio 61 12 - Ustica island 65 13 - Gulf of Castellamare / Trawl Ban Area 71 14 - La Graciosa e Islotes del Norte de Lanzarote 79 15 - La Restinga - Mar de las Calmas 83 16 - Monte da Guia - Faial 87 17 - Formigas islets - Dollabarat bank 91 18 - Tuscany archipelago 95 19 - Malta 25 NM Fisheries Management Zone 99 20 - Rdum Majjiesa / Ras Ir-Raheb 103 4. BIOMEX project: main results in EMPAFISH case studies 107 4.1. The BIOMEX project: general objectives and workplan 107 4.2. Gradients of biomass and biomass export from MPAs 108 4.3. Gradients of abundance of eggs and larvae 109 4.4. Adult fish export and fisheries 109 4.5. Combining evidence of exportation 109 4.6. Conclusions 111 5. Epilogue: available data 113 5.1. The MPAs 113 5.2. The studies with regard to the WP1 framework 113 5.3. Data collected 113 5.4. The designs 113 5.5. Additional data 113 6. Bibliography 117 Annex: List of contributors 157 libro empa verde mio.FH11 29/5/08 18:22 Pgina 6 libro empa verde mio.FH11 29/5/08 18:22 Pgina 7 EMPAFISH Booklet nº 1 Ecological effects of Atlanto-Mediterranean MPAs in the EU Forewords Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are critically important to the conservation of marine biodiversity and ecological processes and to achieving a sound basis for sustainable use and development of marine environments and resources. This is clearly reflected in the statement from World Summit on Sustainable Development (Johannesburg): "MPAs are the key to achieving at least 10% of each of the world's ecological regions effectively conserved - the target established at the 6th Conference of Parties to the Convention on Biodiversity". At the same time, it is widely considered that MPAs can make a significant contribution to regional economic development and to improving the well-being of local communities. Fisheries are one of the main threats to marine biodiversity and ecological processes and MPAs are therefore important for conserving ecosystem services provided by the sea and sustaining tourism that depends on these. By restricting damaging activities, MPAs offer protection for marine natural resources and provide them with critical habitats they need at key times, e.g. for breeding or feeding. MPAs benefit species and habitats of regional interest and may also help to avoid or at least limit the deleterious effects of non-sustainable uses and activities, including pollution and other sources of degradation, in favour of the local economy. However, MPAs, by definition, protect only a defined area and there is a risk that damaging activities may be intensified or inadequately controlled in areas outside the MPA. Establishment of MPAs should therefore be part of a wider strategy for managing marine resources with clearly defined objectives. Effective management of a complex ecosystem under human pressure is not possible without science. The natural sciences are needed to understand the functioning of the ecosystem. MPAs have to be selected, designed, managed and networked in such a way to ensure the maintenance of ecological processes to sustain ecosystem functioning (e.g. connectivity through adult movement and larval dispersal of marine species, habitat representation and replication, preservation of spawning aggregations, recruitment and nursery grounds). Since the first MPA was declared in the Mediterranean, more than 40 years ago (Parc national de Port-Cros, France), a great deal of research has been conducted to describe, characterize and model the ecological effects of protection from fisheries. The EMPAFISH project (European Marine Protected Areas as tools for FISHeries management and conservation), supported by the European Commission, has as general objectives: 1) to investigate the potential of different regimes of MPAs in Europe as measures to protect sensitive and endangered species, habitats and ecosystems from the effects of fishing; 2) to develop quantitative methods to assess the effects of marine protected areas and 3) to provide the EU with a set of integrated measures and policy proposals for the implementation of MPAs as fisheries and ecosystem management tools. The first step to reach these objectives is to know the ecological processes involved in the functioning of a MPA and to understand how ecological networks and relationships between species within an ecosystem reorganize after protection from fishing. From the fisheries point of view, there is an urgent need to know how the behavioural and population responses of individual species and ecological interactions among species may translate into recruitment subsidy and ‘spillover’, which in turn may lead to sustained or enhanced fishery yield in the surrounding region. This cannot be done without well-designed scientific research. Within the EMPAFISH consortium, the 20 case studies included have been the subject of detailed, long-term research. The general objective of EMPAFISH Work Package 1 (WP1: “Ecological effects of Marine Protected Areas”) is to identify and quantify ecological effects of MPAs and to organise the findings in a database for subsequent global meta-analysis and modelling. This booklet constitutes deliverable nº 3 of the EMPAFISH project, under WP1. The present document begins with a brief overview of the ecological processes important for conservation and what are, generally speaking, the expected ecological effects of MPAs. The core of the document is devoted to descriptions of the research done to date at each EMPAFISH case study site to document and understand the ecological effects of protection measures. In chapter 4, a summary of former EC FP5 research project BIOMEX is included; in this project, a consortium of 9 labs (most of them included in EMPAFISH) collected data on 5 out of the 20 cases studies included in EMPAFISH (plus one, Cabrera Archipelago National Park, not included) in order to estimate spillover from MPAs to neighbouring unprotected areas. The majority of these data (using visual census, baited video, ichthyoplankton surveys, and both experimental and onboard commercial fisheries) are to be used within EMPAFISH. Finally, a succinct summary of data available for first analyses within the WP1 is done in chapter 5, including a brief description of new data collected in the framework of EMPAFISH. The bibliography incorporated at the end of this document gives an updated list of articles/references on all ecological studies at the 20 case study sites included in the EMPAFISH project. Serge Planes José A. García Charton Angel Pérez Ruzafa EMPAFISH EMPAFISH EMPAFISH WP1 leader Researcher Coordinator 1 libro empa verde mio.FH11 29/5/08 18:22 Pgina 8 libro empa verde mio.FH11 29/5/08 18:22 Pgina 9 EMPAFISH Booklet nº 1 Ecological effects of Atlanto-Mediterranean MPAs in the EU 1 Ecological processes important for marine protection 1.1 Ecological features of marine ecosystems affecting the biodiversity - ecosystem functioning relationship A number of characteristics distinguish marine from terrestrial ecosystems, regarding the aspects affecting the biodiversity–ecosystem functioning relationship (Carr et al.