Comparative spatial ecology of fished spiny lobsters Panulirus argus and an unfished congener P. guttatus in an isolated marine reserve at Glover's Reef atoll, Belize
-
Published source details
Acosta C. & Robertson D. (2003) Comparative spatial ecology of fished spiny lobsters Panulirus argus and an unfished congener P. guttatus in an isolated marine reserve at Glover's Reef atoll, Belize. Coral Reefs, 22, 1-9.
Published source details Acosta C. & Robertson D. (2003) Comparative spatial ecology of fished spiny lobsters Panulirus argus and an unfished congener P. guttatus in an isolated marine reserve at Glover's Reef atoll, Belize. Coral Reefs, 22, 1-9.
Actions
This study is summarised as evidence for the following.
| Action | Category | |
|---|---|---|
|
Designate a Marine Protected Area with a zonation system of activity restrictions Action Link |
 |
-
Designate a Marine Protected Area with a zonation system of activity restrictions
A site comparison study from 1996–2001 of two coral reef, seagrass, and sandy seabed areas at Glover’s Reef marine reserve, western Caribbean Sea, off the coast of Belize (Acosta & Robertson 2003) found that between four and eight years after designating a marine protected area with a zonation system, abundance and biomass of Caribbean spiny lobster Panulirus argus increased in a zone closed to all commercial fishing and were also greater than in a zone where artisanal commercial fishing occurred. Annual average abundance of lobsters increased in the closed zone (after three years in 1996: 63, after eight years in 2001: 144 lobsters/ha), and was greater than in the fished zone where abundance did not change (1996: 42; 2001: 61 lobsters/ha). Biomass of adult lobsters (>76 mm carapace length) increased in the closed zone (1996: 10; 2001: 155 kg/ha) and was higher than in the fished zone where biomass did not change (1996: 7; 2001: 3.5 kg/ha). All data were extracted from the graphs presented in the study. The reserve was established in 1993, with a general use zone open to artisanal commercial fishing and a zone prohibiting all commercial fishing. In each zone inside the reserve, divers counted and measured lobsters in eight 0.007–0.5 ha coral reef patches/zone at quarterly intervals in 1996–2001.
(Summarised by: Anaëlle Lemasson & Laura Pettit)
)_2023.JPG)
