The Bird's Head Seascape Marine Protected Area network—Preventing biodiversity and ecosystem service loss amidst rapid change in Papua, Indonesia

Quantifying the Ecological Performance of Migratory Bird Conservation: Evidence from Poyang Lake Wetlands in China

Protected areas are essential for the conservation of biodiversity. However, the rapid expansion of urbanization and the intensification of human activities have significantly disrupted environmental integrity, leading to a continuous deterioration in both the quantity and quality of large ecological patches. This has further diminished the connectivity among ecological patches, leading to significant consequences for regional biodiversity conservation. Taking Poyang Lake as a case study, which serves as a crucial wintering habitat for migratory birds along the East Asia-Australasia flyway, this research employs ArcMap technology. It considers various factors including land use type, slope, and elevation to evaluate habitat quality and degradation through the application of the InVEST model. Additionally, the study utilizes the minimum cumulative resistance (MCR) model alongside circuit theory to delineate ecological corridors within the area and to establish a comprehensive ecological network system. The research results in this paper are as follows. (i) During the period from 2000 to 2020, there was an overall decline in habitat quality within the study area, indicating a clear trend of habitat degradation. However, it is worth noting that there was an increase in habitat quality in certain local areas within the protected area. (ii) The ecological resistance values in the core area of the migratory bird reserve in Poyang Lake are generally low. However, the ecological resistance values of the habitats have shown a consistent increase from 2000 to 2020. Additionally, there has been a significant decrease in the density of ecological corridors during this time period. (iii) Over the period from 2000 to 2020, both the number and connectivity of ecological corridors decreased and their integrity and functionality degraded. Consequently, this weakened role of the ecological network has had implications for maintaining regional biodiversity and ecosystem service functions. The findings indicate two conclusions. (i) Ecological connectivity is essential for the conservation of migratory bird habitats. Strengthening control measures aimed at expanding ecological corridors can effectively safeguard flagship and umbrella species, thereby promoting biodiversity conservation. (ii) The establishment of ecological corridors can help reconcile conflicts between conservation efforts and development objectives. This reconciliation carries significant theoretical implications for fostering a harmonious coexistence between humans and birds in Poyang Lake's migratory bird sanctuary.

Shifts in dominance of benthic communities along a gradient of water temperature and turbidity in tropical coastal ecosystems

Tropical coastal benthic communities will change in species composition and relative dominance due to global (e.g., increasing water temperature) and local (e.g., increasing terrestrial influence due to land-based activity) stressors. This study aimed to gain insight into possible trajectories of coastal benthic assemblages in Raja Ampat, Indonesia, by studying coral reefs at varying distances from human activities and marine lakes with high turbidity in three temperature categories (<31 °C, 31-32 °C, and >32 °C). The benthic community diversity and relative coverage of major benthic groups were quantified via replicate photo transects. The composition of benthic assemblages varied significantly among the reef and marine lake habitats. The marine lakes <31 °C contained hard coral, crustose coralline algae (CCA), and turf algae with coverages similar to those found in the coral reefs (17.4-18.8% hard coral, 3.5-26.3% CCA, and 15-15.5% turf algae, respectively), while the higher temperature marine lakes (31-32 °C and >32 °C) did not harbor hard coral or CCA. Benthic composition in the reefs was significantly influenced by geographic distance among sites but not by human activity or depth. Benthic composition in the marine lakes appeared to be structured by temperature, salinity, and degree of connection to the adjacent sea. Our results suggest that beyond a certain temperature (>31 °C), benthic communities shift away from coral dominance, but new outcomes of assemblages can be highly distinct, with a possible varied dominance of macroalgae, benthic cyanobacterial mats, or filter feeders such as bivalves and tubeworms. This study illustrates the possible use of marine lake model systems to gain insight into shifts in the benthic community structure of tropical coastal ecosystems if hard corals are no longer dominant.

A diverse portfolio of marine protected areas can better advance global conservation and equity

Marine protected areas (MPAs) are widely used for ocean conservation, yet the relative impacts of various types of MPAs are poorly understood. We estimated impacts on fish biomass from no-take and multiple-use (fished) MPAs, employing a rigorous matched counterfactual design with a global dataset of >14,000 surveys in and around 216 MPAs. Both no-take and multiple-use MPAs generated positive conservation outcomes relative to no protection (58.2% and 12.6% fish biomass increases, respectively), with smaller estimated differences between the two MPA types when controlling for additional confounding factors (8.3% increase). Relative performance depended on context and management: no-take MPAs performed better in areas of high human pressure but similar to multiple-use in remote locations. Multiple-use MPA performance was low in high-pressure areas but improved significantly with better management, producing similar outcomes to no-take MPAs when adequately staffed and appropriate use regulations were applied. For priority conservation areas where no-take restrictions are not possible or ethical, our findings show that a portfolio of well-designed and well-managed multiple-use MPAs represents a viable and potentially equitable pathway to advance local and global conservation.

Understanding How Marine Protected Areas Influence Local Prosperity-A Case Study of Gili Matra, Indonesia

A Marine Protected Area (MPA) is always expected to create a specified outcome in ecosystem improvement. While they are certain to benefit marine life, MPAs also impact the surrounding communities, as they directly affect the livelihoods of people who rely on marine exploits to make a decent living. In other words, MPAs create new communal dynamics influencing the rate of prosperity in the surrounding communities. Unfortunately, the leverage of MPAs in the coastal communities' social economy is often under-assessed in MPA-related research. The MPA's influence on communal prosperity emphasizes the importance of policy incentives from stakeholders. Therefore, stakeholders' perceptions of MPAs are fundamental in the planning and implementation of MPAs, which could improve the prosperity of the coastal communities. In Gili Matra, Indonesia, where tourism is the MPA's backbone, MPAs are expected to sustain prosperity for future generations. However, some stakeholders with different influential stances to the MPA (Influential Stakeholders (IS) and Non-Influential Stakeholders (NIS)) demand a contradictive approach. This could lead to managerial issues for the MPAs. These issues must be addressed to avoid contradictory objectives that could harm MPA implementation.

Residency, movement patterns, behavior and demographics of reef manta rays in Komodo National Park

Background

The reef manta ray (Mobula alfredi) is a globally threatened species and an iconic tourist attraction for visitors to Indonesia's Komodo National Park (NP). In 2013, manta ray fishing was banned in Komodo NP and its surroundings, preceding the nationwide manta ray protection in 2014. Over a decade ago, a previous acoustic telemetry study demonstrated that reef manta rays had high fidelity to sites within the park, while more recent photo-identification data indicated that some individuals move up to 450 km elsewhere. Characterization of manta ray demographics, behavior, and a focused assessment on site use of popular tourism locations within the park is vital to assist the Komodo NP Management Authority formulate appropriate manta ray conservation and management policies.

Methods

This study uses a long-term library (MantaMatcher.org) of photo-identification data collected by researchers and citizen scientists to investigate manta ray demographics and habitat use within the park at four sites frequented by tour operators: Cauldron, Karang Makassar, Mawan, and Manta Alley. Residency and movements of manta rays were investigated with maximum likelihood analyses and Markov movement models.

Results

A total of 1,085 individual manta rays were identified from photographs dating from 2013 to 2018. In general, individual manta rays displayed a higher affinity to specific sites than others. The highest re-sighting probabilities came from the remote southern site, Manta Alley. Karang Makassar and Mawan are only ~5 km apart; however, manta rays displayed distinct site affinities. Exchange of individuals between Manta Alley and the two central sites (~35.5 km apart) occurred, particularly seasonally. More manta rays were recorded traveling from the south to the central area than vice versa. Female manta rays were more mobile than males. Similar demographic groups used Karang Makassar, Mawan, and Manta Alley for foraging, cleaning, cruising, or courtship activities. Conversely, a higher proportion of immature manta rays used the northern site, Cauldron, where foraging was commonly observed. Fishing gear-related injuries were noted on 56 individuals (~5%), and predatory injuries were present on 32 individuals (~3%). Tourism within the park increased from 2014 to 2017, with 34% more dive boats per survey at Karang Makassar and Mawan.

Discussion

The Komodo NP contains several distinct critical habitats for manta rays that encompass all demographics and accommodate seasonal manta ray movements. While the present study has not examined population trends, it does provide foundational data for such work. Continued research into manta ray abundance, long-range movements, and identifying and protecting other critical aggregation areas within the region is integral to securing the species' recovery. We provide management recommendations to limit undue pressure on manta rays and their critical habitats from tourism.