Presentation of Camilo Thompson (MsC), AIDA's Attorney of Marine Program, at the webinar "Herbivorous Fish to improve Coral Reef Health: Scientific and regional regulatory measure", held on June 25th, 2020.
Importance of herbivorous fish regulation for Coral Reefs in the Wider Caribbean Region
1. IMPORTANCE OF HERBIVOROUS FISH
REGULATION FOR CORAL REEFS HEALTH IN THE
WIDER CARIBBEAN REGION
Camilo Thompson, June 25, 2020
Parrotfishsemaphore(Sparisomaviride).Foto:Actor212_CCBY-NC-ND2.0
2. 1.5 C°
70% to 90%
loss of
ecosystem
2.0 C°
Ecosystem
Collapse with
lost of 99%
CORAL REEFS
GLOBAL & REGIONAL
THREATS
Thank you Laura and thank you all for taking the time to be here to know about the importance of herbivorous fish regulations for the coral reefs in the Wider Caribbean region.
Coral reefs are vital ecosystems for the human population on Earth. And the Wider Caribbean Region is not the exception. This ecosystem is home to about one-quarter of all marine species of the world. They provide environmental services such as critical spawning grounds for fishes, sites for tourism, and buffers to protect coastal areas from storm damage and climate change.
Imagine, 1 km2 of coral reef is estimated to be between US $100,000 and US $600,000.
Unfortunately, this ecosystem is under threat by human impacts and climate change.
To highlight how grave and delicate the situation of coral reef ecosystems are, over 50 % of the world’s coral reefs have died in the last 30 years, and up to 90 % may die within the next century.
We have GLOBAL threats as:
- Bleaching
- Ocean Acidification
- Sea Temperature Increase
And REGIONAL threats as:
- Overfishing
- Contamination and nutrient overload that causes an increase in macro-algae and sediments, that force coral species to disease.
According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) if, temperature increase to 1.5° C between 70% and 90% of the coral reef coverage expected to disappear. And if the temperature increase more the ecosystem will collapse. Their disappearance will, therefore, have economic, social, and health consequences for all of us.
TThis project advocates for proactive policies to protect and restore the health of our coral reefs and key species of reef fish, such as parrotfish and other important herbivorous fish.
But why protect parrotfish?
Herbivorous fish in general, help maintain healthy reefs, control the abundance of macro-algae, and support coral recruitment.
Moreover, they are natural eroders, producing sediments like the white sand we see on beaches, where some species can excrete between 40kg and 200kg of sand per year.
The relationship between coral reefs and herbivorous fish is a Natural value that we need to conserve with Ecosystem-Based Management.
Herbivorous fish and coral reefs: a relationship we must protect
At AIDA, we are currently working on the reef fish conservation project, which has led us to work closely, with a collaborative way, with many stakeholders, as academia, NGOs, governments from countries and regions in both, the wider Caribbean and the Tropical Eastern Pacific.
Our goals are the recognition of the importance of this species by international conventions and initiatives, as well as by countries and regions.
As observers to the SPAW Protocol, we are currently working on the assessment of herbivorous fishes, such as parrotfishes, with the Species Working Group of the Scientific and Technical Committee (STAC) of the SPAW protocol.
In the following slide, we can see the Wider Caribbean region. Seventeen countries ratified the SPAW protocol, as you can see on the map. However, the whole region has 41 states and island territories, and only exist 13 territoires and countries have regulatory measures for some herbivorous fish. It is a great advantage. However, more is the need for a threat ecosystem.
Under the SPAW Protocol framework, species should be included in Appendices II and III. The protocol criteria state that essential species for vulnerable ecosystems should be regulated. Appendix II prohibits the exploitation of the species, and appendix III regulates the sustainable management of species populations.
In our previous seminar, we heard from representatives of environment and fishery ministries about the experiences of herbivorous fish regulation. Today we will continue learning from marine science, monitoring, and the regional vision of herbivorous fish in the Caribbean.
Thanks, a you very much!!
The Interamerican Association for Environmental Defense appreciate your time.
Now we can hear our first, scientist speaker.
