ICES Journal of Marine Science: Journal du Conseil Advance Access originally published online on June 19, 2009
ICES Journal of Marine Science: Journal du Conseil 2009 66(9):1931-1941; doi:10.1093/icesjms/fsp164
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Different responses to area closures and effort controls for sedentary and migratory harvested species in a multispecies coral reef linefishery
1 CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research, GPO Box 1538, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia, and Crawford School of Economics and Government, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia
2 School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences, University of Washington, Box 355020, Seattle, WA 98195-5020, USA, and CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research, GPO Box 1538, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
3 Centre for Australian Climate and Weather Research, CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research, GPO Box 1538, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
4 Bureau of Rural Sciences, GPO Box 858, Canberra, ACT, Australia
5 School of Tropical Environment Studies and Geography, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia
6 CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research, Cleveland, QLD, Australia
Correspondence to L. R. Little: tel: +61 3 6232 5006; fax: +61 3 6232 5053; e-mail: rich.little{at}csiro.au
Little, L. R., Punt, A. E., Mapstone, B. D., Begg, G. A., Goldman, B., and Ellis, N. 2009. Different responses to area closures and effort controls for sedentary and migratory harvested species in a multispecies coral reef linefishery. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 66: 1931–1941.We used a simulation model to examine the effect of area closures and fishing effort on the two main target species of the Great Barrier Reef Coral Reef Finfish Fishery: common coral trout (Plectropomus leopardus) and red throat emperor (Lethrinus miniatus). Area closures had greater effect on the more sedentary coral trout, in the areas outside the closures and accessible to the fishery, and little effect on red throat emperor, which was assumed to move among reefs. The effects of effort levels were greater than area closures on the harvest of both species and were seen not only in the areas accessible to the fishery, but also in the biomass of red throat emperor in the areas closed to the fishery. The catch and biomass resulting from a given effort level did not appear to have an equivalent effect attributable to any area closure. Although the effects of effort levels and area closures are confounded in reality by the coincidental implementation of area closures and restructuring of the fishery, the simulation model separated these factors to show that the closures under the 2004 rezoning should have had minimal effect on total-stock biomass and that a greater effect would result from changes in fishing effort.
Keywords: effort control, fisheries management, input control, management strategy evaluation, marine protected areas, marine reserves
Received 17 November 2008; accepted 21 April 2009; advance access publication 19 June 2009.