Reef fish spawning aggregations

Optimal design for no-take fishery reserves

This is a WIOMSA (MASMA)-funded project examining reef fish spawning aggregations and their protection. Many key fishery species of coral reefs form large spawning aggregations at specific sites and times each year. Fishers’ knowledge of these aggregations can lead to heavy fishing which can result in reduced fisheries productivity, reduced resilience to pressures such as climate change, and even local extirpation. The overall goal of this project is to develop and promote robust scientific approaches for the management of important fishery species that aggregate to spawn in the Western Indian Ocean (WIO) to complement fisheries management and conservation goals. The project focuses on the management of known spawning aggregation sites at five study locations in Seychelles, Kenya and Zanzibar, where some form of Marine Protected Area (MPA) exists or has been proposed.

Building on previous research in the WIO, the project focuses on three species of groupers (Epinephelus fuscoguttatus, E. lanceolatus and E. polyphekadion) and a rabbitfish (Siganus sutor). All these species contribute to important commercial or artisanal fisheries. The specific objectives of the project are to: (1) Define the spatio-temporal dynamics of spawning behaviour of key fishery species that form spawning aggregations; (2) Determine management requirements for spawning aggregations with a focus on optimal designs for no-take fishery reserves and assessing the role of MPAs; (3) Raise awareness and develop policy advice relating to the management of reef fish spawning aggregations at national, regional and global levels. Besides CORDIO East Africa, the other collaborators/investigators in the project are the Seychelles Fishing Authority (SFA), Institute of Marine Science (IMS) Zanzibar, Tanzania, and the Kenya Marine & Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI).