Coral Reef Ecosystem Science: Future Directions PIFSC Rusty Brainard, PhD Coral Reef Ecosystem Program Ecosystem Sciences Division April 6, 2016

U.S. Department of Commerce | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration | NOAA Fisheries | Page 2 T O R 1. Have goals, objectives, and is well integrated and prioritized? Mission statement, National goals/objectives/priorities (NOAA & NMFS), Region & Center priorities. Extensive collaborative across Center (ESD-EOP & SEP, PSD, FRMD, SOD), NOAA, other Federal/State/Territorial Agencies, Academic Institutions 2. Address needs of managers & partners? Work closely with NOAA and jurisdictional fisheries & coastal resource mgmt agencies to identify & address science-for-management needs at Nat’l, Regional, Local scales 3. Climate science strategy – regional action plan? Co-authored NMFS Climate Science Strategy and assisting development of Pacific Islands Regional Climate Action Plan 4. Status of ecosystem & oceanographic data? Data from on-going, long-term integrated ecosystem observations of Pacific coral reefs & associated ecosystem research & modeling are adequately managed, archived, & made available to managers & researchers as requested in a timely manner Addressing: Terms of Reference

U.S. Department of Commerce | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration | NOAA Fisheries | Page 3 T O R 5. Appropriately analyzing and modeling ecosystem process? Quantitative tools & models to examine impacts of fishing, land-based pollution, & climate variability on trophic, temporal, & spatial dynamics for coral reefs. Developed Atlantis Guam ecosystem model to integrate biological, environmental, & socio-economic knowledge as a decision-support tool. 6. Is our science used by managers? ESA (PIRO) - Status Review Report; Habitat Maps, Population Assessment MSA – Annual Catch Limits (Council), EFH/HAPC (PIRO), Fisheries Ecosystem Plans (Council) Jurisdictional Partners – fisheries management, coastal zone management (wind farms, cable placement, dredging, etc.) Marine National Monuments (PIRO/USFWS) – Resource status & trends, biodiversity 7. Is our work peer-reviewed? Publications in Nature, PNAS, Proc. B Royal Soc, PLoS One, MEPS, Oceanography, Cons. Bio., BioScience, J Mar Bio, Coral Reefs, Marine Policy, Coastal Mgmt, Marine Pollution Bull, BAMS, Prog Ocean, J Appl Ecol, Aq Geoch, Geology, Diversity, … 8. Do we communicate results to partners, stakeholders, and public? Publications, presentations, working groups, steering committees, outreach (PIFSC Blog, Facebook) Addressing: Terms of Reference

U.S. Department of Commerce | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration | NOAA Fisheries | Page 4 PIFSC Theme 1: Assess & Monitor – NCRMP/Pacific RAMP is a core activity to conduct interdisciplinary & integrated ecosystem monitoring of biotic & abiotic components of reef ecosystems across the Pacific Islands Region. Though focusing primarily on managed species/stocks/habitats, we monitor ecosystem structure & function from microbes to apex predators. Developing indicators to track changes. Information to support Integrated Ecosystem Assessments. PIFSC Theme 2: Environment & Ecosystems – RFP-directed research aims to quantify & understand how & why coral reef & insular ecosystems change in response to fishing, pollution, ocean & climate changes, & other drivers. PIFSC Theme 2: Project ocean & climate impacts on ecosystems, fisheries, protected species, habitats, & human well-being. Build, maintain, apply & improve ecosystem models as research tools. PIFSC Theme 3: Maximizing Effectiveness – delivering science to support management in many forms: Peer-reviewed publications, Reports, Presentations, Outreach CREP OVERARCHING RESEARCH THEMES

U.S. Department of Commerce | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration | NOAA Fisheries | Page 5 Improve Benthic Habitat Maps: ESA habitat utilization  NCRMP  Stock assessment Ecosystem Changes over Time Time series analyses  Cause/effect analyses  CoralNet Ecosystem Indicators to support transition to EBFM & EBM NCRMP Report Cards (for CRCP)  Fisheries Ecosystem Plans (for Council) Coral Reef Ecosystem Monitoring Report for Pacific Remote Islands (for PIRO) Atlantis Ecosystem Modeling - management strategy evaluation (MSE) New locations  Acclimation, adaptation & evolution  Human well-being ON-GOING EFFORTS

U.S. Department of Commerce | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration | NOAA Fisheries | Page 6 Genetics: ESA corals (& future listings) – species question! Changes in biodiversity & ecosystem function – for EBFM/EBM Resilience, Adaptation, Evolution Response Experiments – effects of stressors (warming, acidification, pollution) on ESA-listed corals (& future listings) Mesophotic & Deep Coral Ecosystems Advanced Technologies – UASs, LiDAR, AUVs, ROVs, Gliders, etc. Ecosystem Function– understand trophic, biophysical & human linkages Initiate Plankton monitoring Build Capacity to Implement EBFM FUTURE NEEDS: APPROACHES & TECHNOLOGIES

U.S. Department of Commerce | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration | NOAA Fisheries | Page 7 Thank You! Questions?