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NOAA Scientists Map Fish Habitat and Movements at Gray's Reef Marine Sanctuary
September 03, 2009Two related research expeditions by NOAA scientists to track the habitat preferences and movements of fish at Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary may help managers protect overfished species such as red snapper and grouper. Research from the two expeditions appears in the current online edition of the peer-reviewed Bulletin of Marine Sciences.
"It's important to know exactly what areas to protect," says Matt Kendall, principle investigator on the habitat mapping project. "Certain fish gravitate to certain bottom types. If you want to protect red snapper, for example, you have to know where they live."
The projects tracking fish movements through telemetry will help researchers better understand the basic "life histories" of these fish. The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council, citing the "lack of basic management data as a major obstacle" to the successful management of these species, has recently called for a total ban on red snapper fishing to help restore stock levels. The ban is pending final approval.
According to the latest reports from NOAA Fisheries, black sea bass, red snapper, red grouper, and gag are among the region's overfished species. These studies are helping researchers better understand the movements and habitat preferences of these species, and their potential vulnerability to fishing. This knowledge will contribute to stock management and recovery of overfished species.
In the first of the two expeditions, researchers confirmed the importance of limestone ledges, which make up only one percent of Gray's Reef and only slightly more of the entire continental shelf of the southeastern United States. Scientists noted a distinct correlation between ledge characteristics such as height and degree of undercut to the types and numbers of fish found at the ledge. This information can help prioritize reef areas for management.
For example, gag and scamp, two grouper species prized by recreational fishermen, are nearly always present at ledges extending from a wall or structure by 12-18 inches - a ledge type that represents only a tiny fraction of limestone ledges in the sanctuary. Red snapper are typically present near ledges extending a minimum of 27 inches, a ledge type that also represents only a small portion of the limestone ledges in the sanctuary.
Kendall and his colleagues are not only mapping the relative value of Gray's Reef habitat for various fish communities, but also tracking how fish move around the sanctuary. Over the last two years, Kendall and his team have implanted tracking devices in fish which are being used in conjunction with sensors placed throughout part of the sanctuary.
These sensors will help them understand, for example, which fish are "homebodies" and which fish travel more widely. The data so far reveals that grouper tend to stay close to their preferred ledges, while snapper venture farther from their home territory.
The team's research not only has implications for the management of Gray's Reef Sanctuary, but also for the management of reefs throughout the South Atlantic region. "If the fish have these kinds of specific relationships to the bottom habitat at Gray's Reef, there is no reason to think that these same relationships don't exist elsewhere in the southeastern United States," Kendall said.
NOAA understands and predicts changes in the Earth's environment, from the depths of the ocean to the surface of the sun, and conserves and manages our coastal and marine resources.
NOAA
According to the latest reports from NOAA Fisheries, black sea bass, red snapper, red grouper, and gag are among the region's overfished species. These studies are helping researchers better understand the movements and habitat preferences of these species, and their potential vulnerability to fishing. This knowledge will contribute to stock management and recovery of overfished species.
In the first of the two expeditions, researchers confirmed the importance of limestone ledges, which make up only one percent of Gray's Reef and only slightly more of the entire continental shelf of the southeastern United States. Scientists noted a distinct correlation between ledge characteristics such as height and degree of undercut to the types and numbers of fish found at the ledge. This information can help prioritize reef areas for management.
For example, gag and scamp, two grouper species prized by recreational fishermen, are nearly always present at ledges extending from a wall or structure by 12-18 inches - a ledge type that represents only a tiny fraction of limestone ledges in the sanctuary. Red snapper are typically present near ledges extending a minimum of 27 inches, a ledge type that also represents only a small portion of the limestone ledges in the sanctuary.
Kendall and his colleagues are not only mapping the relative value of Gray's Reef habitat for various fish communities, but also tracking how fish move around the sanctuary. Over the last two years, Kendall and his team have implanted tracking devices in fish which are being used in conjunction with sensors placed throughout part of the sanctuary.
These sensors will help them understand, for example, which fish are "homebodies" and which fish travel more widely. The data so far reveals that grouper tend to stay close to their preferred ledges, while snapper venture farther from their home territory.
The team's research not only has implications for the management of Gray's Reef Sanctuary, but also for the management of reefs throughout the South Atlantic region. "If the fish have these kinds of specific relationships to the bottom habitat at Gray's Reef, there is no reason to think that these same relationships don't exist elsewhere in the southeastern United States," Kendall said.
NOAA understands and predicts changes in the Earth's environment, from the depths of the ocean to the surface of the sun, and conserves and manages our coastal and marine resources.
NOAA
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NOAA report finds flower garden banks sanctuary reefs among healthiest in Gulf
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NOAA and partners to survey ships sunk off north Carolina in World War II
NOAA will lead a three-week research expedition in August to study World War II shipwrecks sunk in 1942 off the coast of North Carolina during the Battle of the Atlantic.
NOAA and partners to survey marine life at USS Monitor wreck site
NOAA will participate in a private research expedition to study marine life living on and around the wreck of the USS Monitor.
NOAA Report Finds Threats to California's Cordell Bank Marine Sanctuary
A new NOAA report on the health of Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary indicates that the overall condition of the sanctuary's marine life and habitats is fair to good, but identifies several emerging threats to sanctuary resources.
NOAA, USFWS study finds potential disease threats to Washington sea otters
Many of Washington State's sea otters are exposed to the same pathogens responsible for causing disease in marine mammal populations in other parts of the country.
Seamounts may serve as refuges for deep-sea animals that struggle to survive elsewhere
Over the last two decades, marine biologists have discovered lush forests of deep-sea corals and sponges growing on seamounts (underwater mountains) offshore of the California coast. It has generally been assumed that many of these animals live only on seamounts, and are found nowhere else.
NOAA and partners to survey German subs sunk off North Carolina during World War II
NOAA will lead a research expedition July 7-26 to study the wrecks of three German submarines sunk by U.S. forces in 1942 off the coast of North Carolina during the Battle of the Atlantic.
Dry Tortugas show positive trends: Protected area slowly rebounding
A team of 38 research divers from the University of Miami (UM) Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, NOAA Fisheries Service, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the National Park Service, REEF, and the University of North Carolina at Wilmington recently completed a successful 20-day biennial census to measure how the protected status of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary's Tortugas Ecological Reserve and Dry Tortugas National Park's Research Natural Area are helping the regional ecosystem rebound from decades of overfishing and environmental changes.
New Whale Detection Buoys Will Help Ships Take the Right Way through Marine Habitat
Researchers from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) and the Bioacoustics Research Program (BRP) at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology have teamed up with an international energy company and federal regulators to listen for and help protect endangered North Atlantic right whales in New England waters.
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