Conservation of Marine Biodiversity and Resources

Marine protected areas-

Spatial management of invertebrate and rockfish populations is being evaluated as an alternative to traditional fishery management practices. Current research is focused on larval recruitment relative to the configuration of the coastline and adult movements to assist in the establishment of marine reserves. The California legislature mandated the establishment of a network of marine reserves in the Marine Life Protection Act of 1999, and my laboratory is evaluating the spatial management of invertebrate and rockfish populations to complement traditional fishery management practices. We demonstrated that larval supply varies predictably around both large and small headlands and argued that an effective network of marine reserves should include these hotspots of larval accumulation (publication 46). We also used radio-acoustic positioning telemetry to show that rockfish have small home ranges and high site fidelity around pinnacles. Fish made brief excursions along defined corridors during twilight depending on upwelling conditions. Accounting for concentrated use of relatively small core areas within the home range improves estimates of spillover for designing reserves.

Jorgensen SJ, Kaplan DM, Klimley AP, Morgan SG, O'Farrell MR, Botsford LW. 2006 Limited movement in blue rockfish Sebastes mystinus: internal structure of home range Marine Ecology Progress Series 327:157-170

Top