| Summary: | The Hawaii Division of Aquatic Resources (DAR) established an Herbivore Fisheries Management Area (HFMA) in front of Kahekili Beach Park in West Maui that was effective on July 25th 2009. The basis for the Kahekili HFMA arises from decadal benthic data (collected by DAR and partners since 1994) that shows that coral cover has been declining since 1999, whereas the abundance of algae has sharply increased, especially the abundance of the invasive algae Acanthophora spicifera. Thus the herbivore fish are more abundant to help combat the algae. Benthic transects were performed to assess the diversity and coverage of algal and urchin species in the Kahekili area in 2008-2009. To address the sources of the algal blooms, a seep sampling device for water chemistry analysis and a macroalgae bio-indicators were used to monitor the nutrient conditions. Fine-scale surveys were made in the Kahekili HFMA and in Kihei in 2008 and 2009. Detection of delta-15 nitrogen levels were made all around Maui in the summer of 2007, every mile in built-up areas and every five miles in remote areas, for a total of 116 sites.
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