Coral Reef Research in the Philippines and Beyond

Hazel O. Arceo

Philippines Philippines
CHINA

Fast Facts:
Composed of 7,107 islands Total area: 300,000 km2

LUZON
Manila

N-S: 1,850 km E-W: 1,127 km) Total coastline: 36,289 km

VISAYAS
Cebu

Population: 88.5 M (NSO

2007)

Tropical wet climate (wet and dry seasons)

MINDANAO

How it was formed

Tracks of tropical cyclones that entered the PAR during the period period 19481948-2005 (1128 tropical cyclones)

Marine Biodiversity
Coral Reefs
North Philippine Sea

25,819 km2 (Burke et al. 2002) 464 coral species (Licuanan & Capili
2003; Veron & Fenner 2002)

LUZON
South China Sea

915 reef fish species (Hilomen et al. 2000) [>3,000 fish species (FishBase 2007) ]
Visayan Seas

VISAYAS
South Philippine Sea Sulu Sea

Algae - 820 species (Trono 1999) Seagrass - 16 species (Fortes & Santos
2004)

Mangroves - 30 species (WRI 2003) Other species (Pan et al. 2008):

Annelida 57 Arthropoda 582 Bryozoa 56 Cnidaria 669 Echinodormata 90 Mollusca 1,982 Mammalia - 31 Porfiera 64 Reptilia - 27

MINDANAO
Celebes Sea

Marine biogeographic regions (modified from Alio and Gomez 1994)

The Philippines is at the center of marine biodiversity in the world world

Philippine MPAs
Hottest of the marine biodiversity hotspots in the world (Roberts et al. 2002) Over 1,000 existing MPAs in the country (Arceo et al. 2008) Only about 25-30% are effectively managed

Previous Research Work

Bachelor of Science in Marine Biology (1993(1993-1997)

The Effects of Heavy Metals (Pb, Zn, Cd, Hg) on Milkfish (Chanos chanos), Tiger Prawn (Penaeus monodon) and Horn Shell (Rhinoclavis sp.)
Department of Biology - Marine Biology Section University of San Carlos, Cebu City

Previous Research Work

Master of Science in Marine Science (1999(1999-2004)

Patterns and Role of Recruitment on the Community Dynamics of Reef Fishes in the Philippines
Marine Science Institute University of the Philippines - Diliman

MAIN OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY:

1.

To investigate patterns of recruitment in Philippine reef fishes

Spatial (3 scales) Temporal

2.

To examine the role of recruitment on coral reef fish dynamics

22.0

STUDY AREAS:
Aparri (3)

21.0

20.0

19.0

18.0

17.0

16.0

Bolinao (23) Balingasay (45) Masinloc (44)

Anda (37) Alaminos (3)

Casiguran (3) Dinalungan (7) Baler (7)

5 biogeographic regions 31 localities in 50 provinces

PHILIPPINE SEA

15.0

14.0

Latitude (N)

Mabini (10) Twin Rocks (40)

Calauag Bay (31) Lagonoy Gulf (27) Ragay Gulf (44)

26 (database) 5 (primary data)

13.0

SOUTH CHINA SEA

Masbate (7)
12.0

514 transects Fish Visual Census

Juveniles (100 m2) Adults (500 m2)

North Palawan (7) El Nido (20) San Vicente (9) Cordova (10) Honda Bay (17) Puerto Princesa Bay (17) Zamboanga (2) Danjugan (35) Talibon (7) Calape (10) Loon (10) Sibulan (8)

11.0

10.0

Kalayaan Island Group (9)

9.0

8.0

SULU SEA

Tukuran (7) Tabina (7)

7.0

6.0

Kiamba (8)

5.0

CELEBES SEA

4.0 115.0

116.0

117.0

118.0

119.0

120.0

121.0

122.0

123.0

124.0

125.0

126.0

127.0

128.0

Longitude (E)

LIT (secondary data) Video Transects (primary data)

Spatial Pattern: Biogeographic Region

Abundance
no. of juveniles/100m2 250 200 150 100 50 0 SCS (n=83) NP (n=40) VIS (n=54) SS (n=32) CEL (n=22)

KruskalKruskal-Wallis ANOVA *p<0.05

Species Richness
no. of species/100m2 20 15 10 5 0 SCS (n=83) NP (n=40) VIS (n=54)

KruskalKruskal-Wallis ANOVA *p<0.001

SS (n=32)

CEL (n=22)

Composition of Reef Fish Families

SOUTH CHINA SEA (11 localities)
100% 80% 60% 40% 20% 0%
Masinloc Anda Balingasay Twin Rocks Bolinao Alaminos Mabini San Vicente El Nido KIG NW Palawan

SULU SEA (4 localities)

100% 80% 60% 40% 20% 0%
100% 80% 60% 40% 20% 0%

VISAYAN SEA (7 localities)

Danjugan

Honda Bay

PPC Bay

Zamboanga

Ragay

Masbate Cordova Sibulan

Talibon

Loon

Calape

NORTH PHILIPPINE SEA (6 localities)

100% 80% 60% 40% 20% 0%

CELEBES SEA (3 localities)

100% 80% 60% 40% 20% 0%

Calauag

Lagonoy

Dinalungan

Baler

Casiguran

Aparri

Kiamba

Tabina

Tukuran

Acanthuridae Anthiinae

Labridae Scaridae

Plotosidae Pomacentridae

Other Families

Spatial Pattern: Locality

Abundance
One-way ANOVA
20

Species Richness
One-way ANOVA
20

**p<0.001

**p<0.001

18

18

16

16

14

14

12

12

10

10

4 114 116 118 120 122 124 126

4 114 116 118 120 122 124 126

High (>200 ind/100m2) Medium (51(51-200 ind/100m2) Low (<50 ind/100m2)

High (>15 species/100m2) Medium (5(5-15 species/100m2) Low (<5 species/100m2)

Spatial Pattern: Island

Abundance
One-way ANOVA) (NS at p<0.05, One
North Wall (NW) Bamboo Bridge (BB) Danjugan West 2 (DW2) Danjugan West 1 (DW1)

Species Richness
One-way ANOVA)) (*p<0.05, One
North Wall (NW) Bamboo Bridge (BB) Danjugan West 2 (DW2) Danjugan West 1 (DW1)

Hillary's Third Lagoon (3L)

Hillary's Third Lagoon (3L)

Twin Peaks 1 (TP1) Twin Peaks 2 (TP2)

Twin Peaks 1 (TP1) Twin Peaks 2 (TP2)

Danjugan Island, Cauayan, Neg. Occidental

Temporal Patterns
no. of species/100m2

LEGEND:
Abundance Species Richness
no. of species/100m2
no. of species/100m2

no. of individuals/100m2

200 no. of individuals/100m2 160 120 80 40 0 Aug-01

ANDA *p<0.05, T-test

**p<0.001, T-test TWIN ROCKS

30 25 20 15 10 5 0

1600 1200 800 400 0 Sep-01 Dec-01 Sep-02 Jan-03

30 25 20 15 10 5 0

Jan-02

Sep-02

Jan-03

no. of species/100m2

no. of individuals/100m2

200 160 120 80 40 0 Aug-01

BALINGASAY

30 25 20 15 10 5 0

DANJUGAN
1600 no. of individuals/100m2 1200 800 400 0 Sep-01 Apr-02 no data Mar-03 30 25 20 15 10 5 0

Jan-02

Sep-02

Jan-03

160 120 80 40 0 Sep-01 Jan-02 Sep-02 Feb-03

25 20 15 10 5 0

no. of species/100m2

no. of individuals/100m2

200

MASINLOC

30

ANOVA Area Season Area x Season

Abundance p<0.001 NS p<0.001

Sp Richness p<0.001 NS p<0.001

AdultAdult-Juvenile Relationships & MPAs Correlation Analyses

(Pearson r, p<0.05)

0.00 0.19 0.20 0.39 0.40 0.69 0.70 0.89 0.90 1.00

Very weak Weak Modest Strong Very strong

Fowler and Cohen 1990

FAMILY (26 families/subfamilies)

Anthiinae Pomacentridae Cirrhitidae Scaridae Labridae 0.726** 0.645* 0.622* 0.514* 0.454*

SpatioSpatio-Temporal Trends in the MPAs

Juvenile Reef Fish
No significant differences in abundance over time
(3-way ANOVA & Kruskal-Wallis ANOVA, p<0.05).

Adult Reef Fish

No significant changes in abundance and biomass over time (3-way ANOVA & Kruskal-Wallis ANOVA, p<0.05).
Duration of study insufficient to detect changes Protection ineffective; poaching Depleted sources of fish stock (e.g. Balingasay & Anda)

Duration of the study insufficient to detect changes

Abundance showed an increasing trend over time in Twin Rocks

Due to increasing number of adult conspecifics

Biomass significantly higher inside than outside the MPA (NE data set, KruskalWallis ANOVA, p<0.05).
Protection effect Choice of sites during MPA establishment Fish feeding activities inside the MPA

Project Involvements

Participatory Evaluation of the Effectiveness of MPAs in Maintaining Reef Functional Biodiversity (1997(1997-2003)
22.0 21.0 20.0 19.0 18.0

Reef monitoring in 8 MPAs

No significant changes in coral cover Fish density increased by 5050-200% Fish biomass increased by 100100-900% Initial biomass value influenced rate of accumulation (Nanola et al. 2007)
Latitude (N)

17.0

Bol ina o (2 3)
16.0

15.0

PHILIPPINE SEA

14.0

13.0

SOUTH CHINA SEA

12.0

11.0

Sa n Vi c ent e (9)
10.0

C ord ova (10)

S a lc e d o

C al ape (1 0) Lo on (1 0)
9.0

S ibul an (8)

8.0

SULU SEA

7.0

6.0

Ki am ba (8 )

5.0

CELEBES SEA

Project funded by: UNDP-GEF-SGP & USAID/DENR-CRMP

Longitude (E)

4.0 115 .0

116.0

1 17.0

118. 0

119.0

12 0.0

121. 0

122.0

123. 0

124.0

1 25.0

126. 0

127.0

128 .0

Manual for Coral Reef Monitoring

1998 Massive Coral Bleaching Event

Arceo et al. 2001

An evaluation of the coral reef benthic assemblages suggests that that exacerbated combined effects of human and natural induced disturbances dictate their recovery and/or denouement;
Changes in major benthic attributes, before, 2-6 months after and a year after the coral bleaching event
80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0

MEAN % COVER

a a b a ab b b a b b b ab a

Bolinao, Pangasinan (n=3)

Jun-98 Aug-98 Jun-99

a b

Western Palawan (n=3)

80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0

MEAN % COVER

Apr-98 Nov-98 May-99

MEAN % COVER

a a b ab a b ab a a b b ab ab b

May-98 Nov-98 May-99

Sulu Sea (n=6)

Arceo et al. 2002

HC

SC

DC

DCA

AA

OT

ABIOTIC UNID 21 Slide courtesy of MC Quibilan

Project Involvements

Enhancing Sustainable Fisheries through Improved Marine Fishery Reserves (2000(2000-2003)

22.0 21.0 20.0 19.0 18.0

ShortShort-range effects
Latitude (N)

17.0

Anda
16.0

B ali nga sa y M a sinl oc

Spillover effect (FVC, fish tagging & tracking, fecundity, fisheries monitoring)
15.0 14.0 13.0 12.0

PHILIPPINE SEA

Tw i n Rock s

SOUTH CHINA SEA

MediumMedium-range effects
Ichthyoplankton surveys (fish larvae and eggs) Oceanographic studies

11.0

Guim a ra s
10.0

Da nj uga n

9.0

8.0

SULU SEA
Z a m boa nga

7.0

LongLong-range effects
Genetic studies

6.0

5.0

CELEBES SEA

4.0 115 .0

116.0

1 17.0

118. 0

119.0

12 0.0

121. 0

Project by: 122.0 123. 0funded 124.0 1 25.0 126. DA-BAR 0 127.0 128 .0

Movement of reef fish

Tagging
Danjugan, Cauayan, Negros Occ. April 2001 May 2003 530 fish tagged 99 species, 22 families

422 tagged inside reserves 34 recaptured = 8.1% recapture rate 8 of 34 tagged inside caught outside (23.5%) 108 tagged outside reserves 10/108 = 9.3% recapture rate All caught outside Reef fish sedentary Evidence of crossing boundaries Spillover ? Flux rates of crossing over? 1o

Emigration rate (potential spillover) ~ 23%

Aurellado et al. 2009

Source: AFMA-MFR Project

LARVAL & EGG DENSITIES IN PANAY GULF, MAY 2002

10.80

PANAY
22 21

10.60
19

20 23

Guimaras

18

17

10.40

16

15

14

13

24

12

11

Spatial scale of 100 km

2

10.20
9

10

10.00

>100 100 50 10
6

7 5

NEGROS
122.60 122.80

Eggs = blue; larvae = red

9.80 121.80

122.00

122.20

122.40

Source: AFMA-MFR Project

Project Involvements

Philippine Environmental Governance 2 Project (2004(2004-2009)

Target outcome: Reduced overfishing & destructive fishing
106,700 ha of coastal area under improved management 20 new marine sanctuaries established (400 ha) 50 existing marine sanctuaries managed (2,500 ha)
South China Sea

North Philippi ne Sea Visayan Seas

Sulu Sea

South Philippine Sea

Map from Ong et al. 2000 with marine biogeographic regions (Alino and Gomez 1994)

Celebes Sea

Project funded by: USAID through DAI Inc.

Coastal Resource Management Planning & Implementation

MPA Establishment and Management MPA networks

Current Research Work

Thesis (2009(2009-present)

Performance Indicators to Assess the Effectiveness of MPAs in Sustaining Fisheries

ECOMERS Universit de Nice - Sophia Antipolis

Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) or Marine/Fish Sanctuaries

Recruitment

Protected Area or sanctuary

FISHERY BENEFITS OF MPAS

Spillover

Slide courtesy of W Campos, UPV

MAIN OBJECTIVES:
1.

To determine the effect of protection on fish recruitment, particularly on density and mortality of recruits; and, To investigate densitydensity-dependent exportation of fish to adjacent areas outside of the MPAs, specifically:
a. b.

2.

the movement of adults (spillover (spillover) spillover) the potential export of reproductive propagules

METHODOLOGY
Cap Roux MPA (Saint Rapha Raphal)
No-take zone 450 hectares extending up to the 80-meter isobath Established in Dec 2003 by the Prudhomie de Peche Initially closed for a 4-year period but was extended to 6 years in Jan 2008 Managed by the city of Saint Raphal

METHODOLOGY
A.

Determining Protection Effects on Fish Recruitment

1.

Monitoring Juvenile Fish Abundance

Seagrass beds Shallow coves (Diplodus spp.) Rocky substrates (Serranus cabrilla)

METHODOLOGY
A.

Determining Protection Effects on Fish Recruitment

2.

Juvenile Fish Mortality Experiment

Photo by: Marine Clozza

Photo by: Marine Clozza

Full cage

Inside Reserve
Open setset-up

Outside Reserve

Partial cage

= Mortality rate

The Residents Residents

Serranus scriba

Serranus cabrilla

Serranus hepatus

Pagrus pagrus

Pagellus bogaraveo

Symphodus sp.

Symphodus roissalli

Pagellus bogaraveo

Pagellus erythrinus

The Predators Predators

Unexpected guests guests

The risk risk

GENERAL METHODOLOGY
B.

Determining Protection Effects on Fish Recovery and Exportation

1.

Adult recovery (reserve effect)

Fish Visual Census (Transect, FAST)

2.

Exportation of adult fish (spillover effect)

Experimental Fishing Fish Tagging/Tracking

3.

Exportation of reproductive propagules

(recruitment effect) Fecundity Study proxy estimate for potential egg/larval outputs

Experimental Fishing Design

3-4 100-meter nets deployed at 10-40 m depths Number of stations inside MPA = 3 stations (approximately 400m distance per station) outside MPA = 5 stations at varying distances from the south boundary (i.e. 200m, 400m, 600, 800 m, 1000m control = 2 stations at least >2000 m away from the south boundary Frequency:
2 seasons (spring and autumn) 2 campaigns per season

Maraming Salamat!
(Merci beaucoup!)