Sessile and mobile components of a benthic ecosystem display mixed trends within a temperate marine reserve
Despite recent efforts to increase the global coverage of marine protected areas (MPAs), studies investigating the effectiveness of marine protected areas within temperate waters remain scarce. Furthermore, out of the few studies published on MPAs in temperate waters, the majority focus on specific...
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ftleedsuniv:oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:84754 2023-05-15T16:19:22+02:00 Sessile and mobile components of a benthic ecosystem display mixed trends within a temperate marine reserve Howarth, Leigh Michael Pickup, Sarah Evans, Lowri Cross, Tim Hawkins, Julie Patricia Roberts, Callum Michael Stewart, Bryce Donald 2015-06 text https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/84754/ https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/84754/1/Howarth_et_al_2015_Mixed_responses_of_the_ecosystem_within_a_temperate_marine_reserve.pdf https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marenvres.2015.03.009 en eng https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/84754/1/Howarth_et_al_2015_Mixed_responses_of_the_ecosystem_within_a_temperate_marine_reserve.pdf Howarth, Leigh Michael, Pickup, Sarah, Evans, Lowri et al. (4 more authors) (2015) Sessile and mobile components of a benthic ecosystem display mixed trends within a temperate marine reserve. Marine Environmental Research. pp. 8-23. ISSN 0141-1136 Article PeerReviewed 2015 ftleedsuniv https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marenvres.2015.03.009 2023-01-30T21:31:43Z Despite recent efforts to increase the global coverage of marine protected areas (MPAs), studies investigating the effectiveness of marine protected areas within temperate waters remain scarce. Furthermore, out of the few studies published on MPAs in temperate waters, the majority focus on specific ecological or fishery components rather than investigating the ecosystem as a whole. This study therefore investigated both the dynamics of benthic communities as well as fish populations within a recently established, fully protected marine reserve in Lamlash Bay, Isle of Arran, United Kingdom, over a four year period. A combination of photo and diver surveys revealed live maerl (Phymatolithon calcareum), macroalgae, sponges, hydroids, feather stars and eyelash worms (Myxicola infundibulum) to be significantly more abundant within the marine reserve than on surrounding fishing grounds. Likewise, the overall composition of epifaunal communities in and outside the reserve was significantly different. Both results are consistent with the hypothesis that protecting areas from fishing can encourage seafloor habitats to recover. In addition, the greater abundance of complex habitats within the reserve appeared to providing nursery habitat for juvenile cod (Gadus morhua) and scallops (Pecten maximus and Aequipecten opercularis). In contrast, there was little difference in the abundance of mobile benthic fauna, such as crabs and starfish, between the reserve and outside. Similarly, the use of baited underwater video cameras revealed no difference in the abundance and size of fish between the reserve and outside. Limited recovery of these ecosystem components may be due to the relatively small size (2.67 km2) and young age of the reserve (< 5 years), both of which might have limited the extent of any benefits afforded to mobile fauna and fish communities. Overall, this study provides evidence that fully protected marine reserves can encourage seafloor habitats to recover, which in turn, can create a number of benefits that ... Article in Journal/Newspaper Gadus morhua White Rose Research Online (Universities of Leeds, Sheffield & York) Marine Environmental Research 107 8 23 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
White Rose Research Online (Universities of Leeds, Sheffield & York) |
op_collection_id |
ftleedsuniv |
language |
English |
description |
Despite recent efforts to increase the global coverage of marine protected areas (MPAs), studies investigating the effectiveness of marine protected areas within temperate waters remain scarce. Furthermore, out of the few studies published on MPAs in temperate waters, the majority focus on specific ecological or fishery components rather than investigating the ecosystem as a whole. This study therefore investigated both the dynamics of benthic communities as well as fish populations within a recently established, fully protected marine reserve in Lamlash Bay, Isle of Arran, United Kingdom, over a four year period. A combination of photo and diver surveys revealed live maerl (Phymatolithon calcareum), macroalgae, sponges, hydroids, feather stars and eyelash worms (Myxicola infundibulum) to be significantly more abundant within the marine reserve than on surrounding fishing grounds. Likewise, the overall composition of epifaunal communities in and outside the reserve was significantly different. Both results are consistent with the hypothesis that protecting areas from fishing can encourage seafloor habitats to recover. In addition, the greater abundance of complex habitats within the reserve appeared to providing nursery habitat for juvenile cod (Gadus morhua) and scallops (Pecten maximus and Aequipecten opercularis). In contrast, there was little difference in the abundance of mobile benthic fauna, such as crabs and starfish, between the reserve and outside. Similarly, the use of baited underwater video cameras revealed no difference in the abundance and size of fish between the reserve and outside. Limited recovery of these ecosystem components may be due to the relatively small size (2.67 km2) and young age of the reserve (< 5 years), both of which might have limited the extent of any benefits afforded to mobile fauna and fish communities. Overall, this study provides evidence that fully protected marine reserves can encourage seafloor habitats to recover, which in turn, can create a number of benefits that ... |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Howarth, Leigh Michael Pickup, Sarah Evans, Lowri Cross, Tim Hawkins, Julie Patricia Roberts, Callum Michael Stewart, Bryce Donald |
spellingShingle |
Howarth, Leigh Michael Pickup, Sarah Evans, Lowri Cross, Tim Hawkins, Julie Patricia Roberts, Callum Michael Stewart, Bryce Donald Sessile and mobile components of a benthic ecosystem display mixed trends within a temperate marine reserve |
author_facet |
Howarth, Leigh Michael Pickup, Sarah Evans, Lowri Cross, Tim Hawkins, Julie Patricia Roberts, Callum Michael Stewart, Bryce Donald |
author_sort |
Howarth, Leigh Michael |
title |
Sessile and mobile components of a benthic ecosystem display mixed trends within a temperate marine reserve |
title_short |
Sessile and mobile components of a benthic ecosystem display mixed trends within a temperate marine reserve |
title_full |
Sessile and mobile components of a benthic ecosystem display mixed trends within a temperate marine reserve |
title_fullStr |
Sessile and mobile components of a benthic ecosystem display mixed trends within a temperate marine reserve |
title_full_unstemmed |
Sessile and mobile components of a benthic ecosystem display mixed trends within a temperate marine reserve |
title_sort |
sessile and mobile components of a benthic ecosystem display mixed trends within a temperate marine reserve |
publishDate |
2015 |
url |
https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/84754/ https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/84754/1/Howarth_et_al_2015_Mixed_responses_of_the_ecosystem_within_a_temperate_marine_reserve.pdf https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marenvres.2015.03.009 |
genre |
Gadus morhua |
genre_facet |
Gadus morhua |
op_relation |
https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/84754/1/Howarth_et_al_2015_Mixed_responses_of_the_ecosystem_within_a_temperate_marine_reserve.pdf Howarth, Leigh Michael, Pickup, Sarah, Evans, Lowri et al. (4 more authors) (2015) Sessile and mobile components of a benthic ecosystem display mixed trends within a temperate marine reserve. Marine Environmental Research. pp. 8-23. ISSN 0141-1136 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marenvres.2015.03.009 |
container_title |
Marine Environmental Research |
container_volume |
107 |
container_start_page |
8 |
op_container_end_page |
23 |
_version_ |
1766005749587116032 |