M/V ELPIS Coral Reef Restoration Monitoring Report Monitoring Events 2004-2007 Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, Monroe County, Florida

This document presents the results of the first three monitoring events to track the recovery of a repaired coral reef injured by the M/V Elpis vessel grounding incident of November 11, 1989. This grounding occurred within the boundaries of what at the time was designated the Key Largo National Marine Sanctuary (NMS), now designated the Key Largo NMS Existing Management Area within the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS). Pursuant to the National Marine Sanctuaries Act (NMSA) 16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq., and the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary and Protection Act (FKNMSPA) of 1990, NOAA is the federal trustee for the natural and cultural resources of the FKNMS. Under Section 312 of the NMSA, NOAA has the authority to recover monetary damages for injury, destruction, or loss of Sanctuary resources, and to use the recovered monies to restore injured or lost sanctuary resources within the FKNMS. The restoration monitoring program tracks patterns of biological recovery, determines the success of restoration measures, and assesses the resiliency to environmental and anthropogenic disturbances of the site over time. To evaluate restoration success, reference habitats adjacent to the restoration site are concurrently monitored to compare the condition of restored reef areas with natural coral reef areas unimpacted by the vessel grounding. Restoration of the site was completed September 1995, and thus far three monitoring events have occurred; one in the summer of 2004, one in the summer of 2005, and the latest in the summer of 2007. The monitoring in 2004 was in the nature of a “pilot project,” or proof of concept. Only the quantitative results of the 2005 and 2007 monitoring are presented and discussed. Monitoring has consisted of assessment of the structural stability of limestone boulders used in the restoration and comparison of the coral communities on the boulders and reference areas. Corals are divided into Gorgonians, Milleporans, and Scleractinians. Coral densities at the Restored and Reference areas for the 2005 and 2007 events are compared, and it is shown that the densities of all taxa in the Restored area are greater by 2007, though not significantly so. For the Scleractinians, number and percentage of colonies by species, as well as several common biodiversity indices are provided. The greater biodiversity of the Restored area is evidenced. Also, size-class frequency distributions for Agaricia spp. (Scleractinia) are presented. These demonstrate the approaching convergence of the Restored and Reference areas in this regard. An inter-annual comparison of densities, within both areas, for all three Orders, is presented. The most noteworthy finding was the relative consistency across time for all taxa in each area. Finally, certain anomalies regarding species settlement patterns are presented. (PDF contains 48 pages.)

M/V WELLWOOD Coral Reef Restoration Monitoring Report, Monitoring Events 2004-2006. Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary Monroe County, Florida

This document presents the results of the first two monitoring events to track the recovery of a repaired coral reef injured by the M/V Wellwood vessel grounding incident of August 4, 1984. This grounding occurred within the boundaries of what at the time was designated the Key Largo National Marine Sanctuary (NMS), now designated the Key Largo NMS Existing Management Area within the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS). Pursuant to the National Marine Sanctuaries Act (NMSA) 16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq., and the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary and Protection Act (FKNMSPA) of 1990, NOAA is the federal trustee for the natural and cultural resources of the FKNMS. Under Section 312 of the NMSA, NOAA has the authority to recover monetary damages for injury, destruction, or loss of Sanctuary resources, and to use the recovered monies to restore injured or lost sanctuary resources within the FKNMS. The restoration monitoring program tracks patterns of biological recovery, determines the success of restoration measures, and assesses the resiliency to environmental and anthropogenic disturbances of the site over time. To evaluate restoration success, reference habitats adjacent to the restoration site are concurrently monitored to compare the condition of restored reef areas with “natural” coral reef areas unimpacted by the vessel grounding or other injury. Restoration of the site was completed on July 22, 2002, and thus far two monitoring events have occurred; one in the Fall of 2004, and one in the Summer/Fall of 2006. The monitoring has consisted of: assessment of the structural stability of restoration modules and comparison of the coral recruitment conditions of the modules and reference sites. Corals are divided into Gorgonians, Milleporans, and Scleractinians and (except where noted) recruits are defined as follows: Gorgonians—maximum size (height) 150 mm at first monitoring event, 270 mm at second; Milleporans—maximum size (height) 65 mm at first event, 125 mm at second; Scleractinians—maximum size (greatest diameter) 50 mm at second event (only one species was size-classed at first event, at smaller size). Recruit densities at the restored and reference areas for each event are compared, as are size-class frequency distributions. For the Scleractinians, number and percentage of recruits by species, as well as several common biodiversity indices are provided. Finally, a qualitative comparison of recruit substrate settlement preference is indicated. Generally, results indicate that restored areas are converging on reference areas, based on almost all parameters examined, with one noted exception. Further monitoring is planned and the trends are anticipated to continue; close attention will be paid to the indicated anomaly. (PDF contains 63 pages.)

Ecology of Juvenile Walleye Pollock, Theragra chalcogramma: Papers from the workshop "The Importance of Prerecruit Walleye Pollock to the Bering Sea and North Pacific Ecosystems" Seattle, Washington, 28-30 October 1993

The Alaska Fisheries Science Center (AFSC), National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), hosted an international workshop, 'The Importance of Prerecruit Walleye Pollock to the Bering Sea and North Pacific Ecosystems," from 28 to 30 October 1993. This workshop was held in conjunction with the annual International North Pacific Marine Science Organization (PICES) meeting held in Seattle. Nearly 100 representatives from government agencies, universities, and the fishing industry in Canada, Japan, the People's Republic of China, Russia, and the United States took part in the workshop to review and discuss current knowledge on juvenile pollock from the postlarval period to the time they recruit to the fisheries. In addition to its importance to humans as a major commercial species, pollock also serves as a major forage species for many marine fishes, birds, and mammals in the North Pacific region. (PDF file contains 236 pages.)

Preliminary comparison of natural versus model-predicted recovery of vessel-generated seagrass injuries in Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary

Each year, more than 500 motorized vessel groundings cause widespread damage to seagrasses in Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS). Under Section 312 of the National Marine Sanctuaries Act (NMSA), any party responsible for the loss, injury, or destruction of any Sanctuary resource, including seagrass, is liable to the United States for response costs and resulting damages. As part of the damage assessment process, a cellular automata model is utilized to forecast seagrass recovery rates. Field validation of these forecasts was accomplished by comparing model-predicted percent recovery to that which was observed to be occurring naturally for 30 documented vessel grounding sites. Model recovery forecasts for both Thalassia testudinum and Syringodium filiforme exceeded natural recovery estimates for 93.1% and 89.5% of the sites, respectively. For Halodule wrightii, the number of over- and under-predictions by the model was similar. However, where under-estimation occurred, it was often severe, reflecting the well-known extraordinary growth potential of this opportunistic species. These preliminary findings indicate that the recovery model is consistently generous to Responsible Parties in that the model forecasts a much faster recovery than was observed to occur naturally, particularly for T. testudinum, the dominant seagrass species in the region and the species most often affected. Environmental setting (i.e., location, wave exposure) influences local seagrass landscape pattern and may also play a role in the recovery dynamics for a particular injury site. An examination of the relationship between selected environmental factors and injury recovery dynamics is currently underway. (PDF file contains 20 pages.)

Intestinal absorption by Sarotherodon galilaeus (syn Tilapia galilaea ) of Lake Kainji, Nigeria

Carbohydrates, protein, lipid and crude fibre were found to reduce in amount from the anterior to posterior regions along the gut of Sarotherodon galilaeus collected from Lake Kainji. Different regions of the gut exhibited different absorptive powers and all the compounds were differently absorbed in amount. Different sizes of fish showed different absorptive capacity

Fisheries development in Nigeria with special reference to Cross River State

The paper appraises fisheries development in Nigeria with specific reference to Cross River State and the problems militating against increased fish production. The potential for developing the industry to supplement the low level of animal protein consumption in Nigeria is discussed as well as the import of a vibrant fishery industry to contribute to the employment and international trade. The need to legislate on fisheries activities while enforcing the existing laws for sustainable exploitation of the fisheries resources is elaborated. Similarly, the need to maximize the proceeds from Nigeria's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) by protecting the operations of this economic sector and other unauthorized fishing practices is elucidated. In view of the present situation where most of the country's water bodies have been over-fished, more attention and emphasis should be placed on aquaculture development. The paper also proffers recommendations to boost fish production in capture and culture fisheries

Comparison of extruded and non-extruded soy meals in the diet of genetically improved mudfish Heterobranchus longifilis juveniles

Raw soybeans were subjected to three different processing methods viz Parboiling, Toasting and Extrusion with an Intra Pro Extruder. The processed soybean meals were thereafter incorporated at equal levels into the diets of genetically improved mudfish Heterobranchus longifilis juveniles. The fish were fed the experimental diets in triplicate at 5% of their body weight for eight weeks. The growth performance and food utilization indices, namely Mean Weight Gain (MWG), Food Conversion Ratio (FCR), Specific Growth Rate (SGR%) and Protein Efficient Ratio (PER), were monitored bi-weekly. The results show that fish fed the control fishmeal diets were highest in growth performance, which was significantly different (P>0.05) from others. Among the fish fed the test diets, those fed toasted soybean had higher MWG, SGR, FCR and PER than juveniles fed the parboiled soybean diet. The juveniles fed the extruded soybean diet recorded the least growth performance. The implication of these results in diet formulation is discussed

Botanical insecticides prescription for fish pest control and infestation free protein yield

The dry powders of four local species namely Piper guineense Schum and Thonn, Aframomum melegueta Schum, Zingiber officinale Rose; Capsicum annum Miller at three concentrations of 15g, 20g and 25g.kg were evaluated for their insecticidal effects against the larval of the dried fish weevil Demestes maculates Degeer. All the four species showed some effectiveness with P. guineense given a 100% mortality at the end of 72 hours at the three concentrations. The other species though gave less mortality were able to slow down the rate of development of the larvae to the adult size

An annotated bibliography of research on coarse and salmonid fish (excluding salmon and trout) found in fresh water in Scotland

The authors provide an extensive annotated bibliography to a full list of species occurring in Scotland, to highlight what is known about them and to indicate potential areas for further research. The list of references brings together published research papers and numerous unpublished theses and reports, including experimental and laboratory studies conducted in Scotland, although some may not have unique application to the fish fauna in Scottish waters. There has been no attempt to include references that are made incidentally in the general literature intended for naturalists.

A chemical survey of standing waters in south-east England, with reference to acidification and eutrophication

This study looks at the distribution and magnitude of acidification and eutrophication in south-east England where there are no natural lakes but a large number of shallow artificial ponds. The study area is defined as the region lying within a 100 km radius of central London but excluding the area within the M25 motorway. Water samples were taken from 120 sites between mid-January and the end of February 1990, with a subsequent monthly survey of a subset of 31 of these waters. Twelve chemical variables were measured in the laboratory using standard techniques. PH values for the full dataset ranged from 3.2 to 8.4, although the majority of sites had pH values in the range 7.0 to 8.5; only five sites had a pH of less than 6.0. The five low pH sites expectedly had low alkalinities and are the only sites with values below 0.1 meq per litre. Concentrations of calcium, sodium, potassium, magnesium, chloride, sulphate and nitrate had normal distributions. The majority of sites had total phosphorus concentrations in the range 25 to 200 mu g per litre, although 10 sites had concentrations above 400 mu g per litre. The low number of acid sites suggests that surface water acidity is not a widespread regional problem in south-east England. However the survey shows that a large number of standing waters in the region have high total phosphorus and nitrate concentrations, and 89% may be considered moderately to considerably eutrophic.

Report of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission for the year 1980

ENGLISH: The Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission operates under the authority and direction of a convention originally entered into by the Republic of Costa Rica and the United States of America. The convention, which came into force in 1950, is open to adherence by other governments whose nationals fish for tropical tunas in the eastern Pacific Ocean. Under this provision Panama adhered in 1953, Ecuador in 1961, the United Mexican States in 1964, Canada in 1968, Japan in 1970 and France and Nicaragua in 1973. Ecuador withdrew from the Commission in 1968, Mexico in 1978, and Costa Rica in 1979. SPANISH: La Comisión Interamericana del Atún Tropical funciona bajo la autoridad y dirección de un convenio establecido originalmente por la República de Costa Rica y los Estados Unidos de América. El convenio vigente desde 1950, está abierto a la afiliación de otros gobiernos cuyos ciudadanos pescan atún en el Pacífico oriental tropical. Bajo esta estipulación, Panamá se afilió en 1953, Ecuador en 1961, los Estados Unidos Mexicanos en 1964, Canadá en 1968, Japón en 1970, Francia y Nicaragua en 1973. Ecuador se retiró de la Comisión en 1968, México en 1978 y Costa Rica en 1979. Como se informó en el informe anual de la Comisión de 1978, la XXXVI reunión de la Comisión, convocada en Tokio (Japón) del 16 al 18 de octubre de 1978, fue suspendida sin haberse adoptado ninguna acción para fijar una cuota de atún aleta amarilla en 1979. (PDF contains 236 pages.)

Advisory report on nutrient levels and related ecology of Malham Tarn

Aspects of reported nutrient levels and their ecological implications for Malham Tarn are discussed. Discussion centres upon the data given here as appendices, involving possible evidence of a long-term increase in the concentrations of some nutrients (especially nitrate) of significance for the Tarn's ecology and conservation. Further comparative tests of some methods of chemical analysis employed in obtaining those data are reported.

The impact of Cow Green Reservoir on invertebrate populations in the River Tees

Cow Green is a new reservoir situated in Pennine moorland. It has an area of 312 ha, a capacity of 40 . 9 x 10 SUP-6 m SUP-3 and a maximum depth of 22 . 8 m. The function of the reservoir is to regulate flow in the River Tees to provide industrial Teesside with sufficient water during the dry spells. Invertebrate studies were carried out in the Tees to monitor changes resulting from the construction of the reservoir both in the flooded basin and below the dam. The overall effect of the reservoir on the Tees has been to increase the numbers and biomass of certain taxa, but generally not at the expense of previous fauna. Some of the positive effects, ie. increase in number and biomass, and maintenance of faunal diversity, may in part be attributable to the presence of the rapids and waterfall. Turbulence resulting from this rapid flow over heterogeneous bottom is sufficient to prevent clogging of interstitial spaces by silt and to maintain the variety of ecological niches necessary for a diverse fauna.