11th ICRS Abstract book - Nova Southeastern University

18.653
Socioeconomic Baseline Report of U.S. Territories and Counties Adjacent to Coral
Reef Habitats
Steve ROHMANN* 1 , Kristen CROSSETT 1 , Christopher CLEMENT 1
1 NOAA, Silver Spring, MD
Managers of U.S. coral reef jurisdictions have recognized the need to collect
socioeconomic data for communities near coral reef areas. This information is vital to
understanding human dependence and impact on valuable coral reef resources. Most reef
managers in U.S. jurisdictions are aware that census data are available, but they lack the
time or capacity to collect the data and construct socioeconomic profiles. To meet this
need, this project will develop a socioeconomic baseline report for all U.S. territories and
counties adjacent to coral reef habitat, including the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, the
Florida Keys and southeast Florida, Hawaii, Guam, the Northern Marianas, and
American Samoa. The report will include a time series analysis of demographic and
housing and development change from 1990 to 2000 and population projections to 2015.
Maps depicting these changes will be included. The report will provide a foundation of
data that coral managers, local officials, the media, and the general public can draw upon
for planning and management purposes.
18.654
Trends in Reef Recovery in Mafia Island Marine Park, Tanzania
Haji MAHINGIKA* 1,2
1 Research and Monitoring., Mafia Island Marine Park.Tanzania, Coast Region.,
Tanzania, 2 Research and Monitoring., Mafia Island Marine Park., Coast Region,
Tanzania
The establishment of Mafia Island Marine Park (MIMP) in 1995 opened a new strategy in
the conservation of Tanzania Coastal Environment for Coral reefs. Following the 1998 El
Nino phenomenon, coral reefs in MIMP were adversely affected. Therefore, coral
monitoring was initiated at four sites within MIMP (Utumbi, Milimani, Kitutia and
Juani). Monitoring was done biannually from 1999 to 2005 aimed at assessing coral
recovery by using Line Intercept Transect. The results showed that recovery of hard
corals increased from 15% to 25% and 30% to 43% from 1999 to 2005 for Kitutia and
Utumbi sites respectively. Recovery for Milimani and Juani did not significantly
improve, probably due characterized high wave and current energy, especially in Juani.
This implies that faster recovery in Milimani and Juani could be improved through coral
transplantation and/or removal of fleshy algae. Information generated from this study will
be useful for conservation and management of coral reef and other associated coastal
ecosystems (e.g., mangroves, sea grass beds, etc) for sustainable utilization of marine
resources. Environmental parameters such as seawater temperature, tidal currents (water
movement patterns), sedimentation and turbidity, rainfall, etc. are also very important and
should be monitored as well as correlated with reef benthic monitoring results in
explaining biological population dynamics, so as to pinpoint the real cause of changes as
still unclear why coral reefs in Kitutia suffered more mortality after the 1998 coral
bleaching event.
*Corresponding author: Email: ngika47@yahoo.com; Tel.: +255-784-567272.
Poster Mini-Symposium 18: Reef Status and Trends
18.656
An Assessment Of Chemical Contaminants in The Nearshore Waters Of Vieques, Puerto
Rico
Andrew MASON* 1
1 NOAA, Silver Spring, MD
The island of Vieques lies approximately 11 km southeast of the main island of Puerto Rico.
Beginning in the 1940s and ending in 2003, portions of Vieques were used by the U.S. Navy for
the storage and firing of munitions for training purposes. With the departure of the Navy, these
areas have now been transformed into the Vieques National Wildlife Refuge operated by the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). As part of the restoration activities, NOAA’s
National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science and the Office of Response and Restoration, in
cooperation with the USFWS and the U.S. Navy, are conducting an ecological assessment of
the nearshore waters of Vieques. The assessment includes the quantification of chemical
contaminants in sediments and coral tissues, along with a characterization of coral, algal, fish
and macro-invertebrate community structure. To assess chemical contaminants, a stratified
random design was used to sample sediments along with tissues of the coral Porites astreoides.
Approximately 140 chemical contaminants, including both organic (e.g., polycyclic aromatic
hydrocarbons or PAHs, PCBs and pesticides) and inorganic (e.g., trace elements or metals)
contaminants are being characterized in both sediments and coral tissues. Residues of energetics
(i.e., explosives) are also being analyzed in the sediments. In addition to quantifying
contaminant levels, an important goal of the integrated assessment is to determine linkages
between contaminant concentrations and indices of coral ecosystem condition (e.g., coral
community structure).
18.657
Status Of Coral Reef Ecosystems in Marine Managed Areas in St. Croix, Usvi
Sarah HILE* 1 , Chris JEFFREY 1 , Simon PITTMAN 2 , Chris CALDOW 1 , Mark MONACO 1
1 CCMA Biogeography Branch, NOAA, Silver Spring, MD, 2 CCMA Biogeography Branch,
NOAA, St. Thomas, Virgin Islands (U.S.)
This poster presents information on the status and trends of coral reef ecosystems in St. Croix,
US Virgin Islands (USVI) based on data collected between 2001 and 2006 at 1,275 random
locations sampled in and around Buck Island Reef National Monument (BIRNM). Sites were
surveyed using a linear belt-transect (100m2) to assess reef fish assemblages and a 1m2 quadrat
to characterize benthic communties. Fish assemblages were dominated by herbivorous fishes,
with Halichoeres bivittatus (73.2%), Thalassoma bifasciatum (60.9%), Acanthurus bahianus
(59.8%) and Sparisoma aurofrenatum (52.5%) being the most commonly observed species.
Densities of large predators such as the commercially important groupers (Cephalopholis,
Epinephelus and Mycteroperca) were low. The lowest densities of grouper were seen in 2001
(approximately 1 fish per 100 m2) and the highest were observed in March 2003 (3 ± 1 grouper
per 100 m2). C. fulvus was the most common grouper species seen for all years and were larger
than the known size of sexual maturity. Fewer E. gutattus were observed, and only one juvenile
E. striatus was encountered during April 2006. Data from benthic surveys show that colonized
hardbottom habitats across the study region were generally dominated by algae (turf algae,
macroalgae and crustose coraline algae). Live scleractinian coral cover was 5.6% (+ 0.5%).
The three most abundant coral species groups were Montastraea spp., Porites spp. and Diploria
spp. During October 2005, bleaching was observed in 22 species of hard corals at BIRNM and
was recorded at 91 of 94 sites with an estimated 53% of the coral cover bleached. The results
presented here reflect patterns and trends in coral reef ecosystems observed by other monitoring
programs in the US Caribbean.
427