151. Towards a productivity-based management of tropical reefs in the Anthropocene
- Author
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Seguin, Raphael, Mouillot, David, Cinner, Joshua, Stuart-smith, Rick, Maire, Eva, Graham, Nicholas, Mclean, Matthew, Vigliola, Laurent, Loiseau, Nicolas, Seguin, Raphael, Mouillot, David, Cinner, Joshua, Stuart-smith, Rick, Maire, Eva, Graham, Nicholas, Mclean, Matthew, Vigliola, Laurent, and Loiseau, Nicolas
- Abstract
Tropical reefs provide livelihood and food security to millions of people. However, tropical reefs are entering new configurations requiring management strategies to incorporate process-oriented measures such as biomass production to determine their dynamics and resilience. We proposed a new framework, comprising three management strategies based on fish standing biomass and productivity which were calculated on 2,027 reef sites over 39 countries. We found that 3.5% of the sites have low fish biomass and productivity, where alternative fisheries like seaweed and bivalve aquaculture are recommended. We identified 24% of high productivity sites where we suggest adaptive management: establishment of partially protected areas sustaining local fisheries when needed, or full protection when possible given their capacity for recovery. For the 5% high biomass sites, we urgently need full protection to maintain high reproductive capacity through large individuals. Our framework can thus guide management strategies by incorporating both static and process-oriented measures, tailoring each strategy to local priorities based on biodiversity and socio-economic objectives.
- Published
- 2022
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