Q 37 - How to maintain local retention / population persistence within the MPA?#

Broader “Question”

Answers#

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Operational approaches

ESE1 - Ecological toolkit#

Practices: Scoping Data collection and presentation Analysis and diagnosis Prioritisation and designation
Spatial scales: Regional / local
Protection regimes: Strict protection Non-strict protection
Marine zones: Coastal zone Deep sea

Criteria classes: 1.1 Functional 1.1.1 Vulnerability 1.1.2 Stability 1.1.3 Functional hotspots 1.1.4. Life cycle critical areas 1.1.5 Climate-smart potential 1.2 Structural 1.3 Genetic 1.4 Ecological status

Criteria

Operational approaches: (Method) Dispersion and connectivity modelling

Implementation details

To answer this question, the planning team need to prioritise a list of species of interest in maintaining population persistence to maximise the benefits while minimizing the effort made. The selection could be made by analysing synergies between conservation targets. Species chosen could be charismatic species such as umbrella species offering a potential to provide positive conservation efforts to other species (e.g. cetaceans). It is recommended to choose species that hold a functional importance to the ecosystem in the MPA, such as Apex predators, primary producers, habitat forming species etc (see macro-criterion Functional hotspots) or highly threatened species listed in the conventions appendices if the management priority is aimed at conservation.

Traits affecting the potential of the population to adapt to detrimental conditions need to be identified. For example the capacity, extent, ease and frequency to which individuals of a species can move between areas (connectivity, whether passive, i.e. driven by ocean currents or active connectivity through movements of varying scales such as long distance migrations or smaller vertical movements in the water column). To maintain population persistence of a species, a traits-based vulnerability assessment should be conducted which provides a level of vulnerability of a species to the variety of relevant impacts that the species is subjected to.

Local retention/population persistence depends on favorable conditions for a species to remain in an area, grow, reproduce and survive. It also depends on connectivity - an aspect integrated in several of the ESE1 ecological macro-criteria. For example for the macro-criterion Stability, the maintenance of stability, persistence and adaptation depends on connectivity. Species can undertake passive (larval movements pushed by ocean currents) or/and active movement/connectivity (e.g. migrations by cetaceans to foraging, breeding and developmental grounds). Macro-criterion Life cycle critical areas describes in more detail the different types of areas that can aid in the persistence of a population in an MPA, for example if the MPA contains favorable conditions such as functionally important and key life cycle areas used by species as spawning areas, this will allow a species to reproduce, potentially settle in the area or return in the future. The designation, enlargement or spacing of an MPA with regards to other MPAs/protected areas should take into account the presence and location of these key species, habitats and areas so that they can be effectively conserved.

Life cycle critical areas such as criteria larval source, larval sink/settlement areas provide connectivity for populations and species and should be identified, monitored and conserved due to their importance for population persistence. This can be aided by tools such as biophysical models that can provide information on how marine larval dispersal occurs in an area or for larger animals such as elasmobranchs, telemetry can be utilized such as acoustic and satellite tags, that can provide data on movements and habitat use.

Ecological Status is another important factor for population persistence, i.e. the state or condition of the ecological features being considered, for example whether species are endangered or whether environments are degraded or not. These types of criteria are currently used in environmental legislation and habitat/species/criteria lists to prioritize the protection of already threatened areas/ecological features that require a removal of pressures. Even though some of these criteria refer to the condition of biotic processes or interactions, the majority refer to population sizes of threatened species present in the area of interest; therefore the conservation status is currently defined rather with structural aspects than with process-based functional properties (Deliverable 2.2).

Ecological status relates to the criteria ecosystem integrity under macro-criterion Stability, as well as macro-criterion Vulnerability. Steps taken to maintain ecosystem integrity aids in population persistence as stability, in this case for the population of a species depends on favorable conditions allowing the level at which the population is affected by anthropogenic impacts (fishing, habitat destruction, climate change etc) and natural variation (natural mortality rates) is sufficiently replenished through reproduction of the species in question. All impacts of activities that are currently affecting or can affect the species of study (in the present and in future scenarios) should be identified, quantified and eliminated or mitigated if possible.

Notes

This question is related to Question 55: How to adress CC within a MPA network? We highly recommend to consult this answer for more details about connectivity and network building under changing conditions. Please refer in addition to an extensive description that is highly relevant to this question contained in Section 3.2.4 of D3.2 “Portfolio of improved ecological criteria to be applied in systemic biodiversity protection and restoration”.