Jason Krumholz Graduate School of Oceanography- University of Rhode Island RI SURFRIDER- Robert Lloyd Scholarship Presentation 5/16/06 Experimental methods of quantifying and monitoring ecological response to no- take marine reserves in Northeastern National Parks

What is a Marine Protected Area? “ to protect the significant natural and cultural resources within the marine environment for the benefit of present and future generations by strengthening and expanding the Nation’s system of marine protected areas.” Presidential Executive Order #13158 “any area of the marine environment that has been reserved by Federal, State, territorial, tribal, or local laws or regulations to provide lasting protection for part or all of the natural and cultural resources therein.” Federal Register Executive Order #13158 Vol. 65, No Wednesday, May 31, 2000

Reviewing the options...

National Park Service Northeast Region Acadia Boston Harbor Is Cape Cod Sagamore Hill Fire Island Gateway Assateague Island Colonial George Washington Birthplace

The Project... Goal: Review scientific methods for justifying and monitoring no-take reserves in Northeast National Parks Site Selection Ecosystem Response Fisheries Response Monitoring Modeling Primary Focus Secondary Focus

Challenges

Fire Island National Seashore

Maps and Data: Henn & Cullen USACE/TNC Conference

Ecosystem Response Toolbox  Water Quality (oxygen, chlorophyll, Nutrients)  Habitat Quality (eelgrass, sediment chemistry)  Species Richness / Diversity  Benthic Infauna (Polychaetes)  Modeling (Ecosystem, Fisheries)

Polychaetes  Simple to Collect  Multiple Uses Abundance Abundance Diversity Diversity Indicator Species Indicator Species  Shortfalls Time consuming Time consuming High taxonomic res. High taxonomic res.  How can we apply this to MPA’s? A. Giangrande et.al. Mar Pollut Bull (11):

1 Pinnegar, J.K., et.al Trophic cascades in benthic ecosystems: lesson for fisheries and protected-area management. Environmental Conservation 27 (2), 179–200. Trophic Cascade Theory 1 More Big Fish Less Little Fish More Polychaetes Less Predation Ecosystem Health Theory 2 2 A. Giangrande et.al. Mar Pollut Bull (11): Less Disturbance Higher Ecosystem Health Less Opportunists More Diversity More Polychaetes

Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI)  Single metric for ecosystem health/change Simplifies a lot of data into a single index Simplifies a lot of data into a single index Sometimes over-simplifies Sometimes over-simplifies  Used extensively in coral reef ecosystems  Attempted for Narr. Bay (Meng et. al., 2002)  How useful is this tool?

Modeling  Particularly useful in a fisheries and reserve establishment context  Generally show reserves most effective at: Moderate size (10-25% of habitat)Moderate size (10-25% of habitat) Moderate to high fishing pressureModerate to high fishing pressure Low migration rateLow migration rate High dispersal rate of larvaeHigh dispersal rate of larvae  Most highly adaptable models lack fine scale resolution

Ecospace T.A. Okey et al. / Ecological Modelling 172 (2004) 383–401

Conclusions Many techniques from tropical studies can be adapted for use in the Northeast Region Some techniques will have reduced effectiveness in temperate ecosystems NPS must consider scientific programs of study on a park by park basis based on specific reserve goals NPS should consider increased use of benthic infaunal sampling Models are a viable synthetic tool for reserve management, particularly in a fisheries context

Acknowledgements Dr. Charles Roman (NPS) Dr. Candace Oviatt (GSO) Kate Smukler (MPA center) Cliff McCreedy & Gary Davis (NPS) Photo Credits: Brooke Longval, Eric Klos, Charles Roman, J.C. Shou Funding From: Coastal Institute IGERT Program Matt horn is gay

THANK YOU VERY MUCH ANY QUESTIONS ?