Umbrella species in marine systems: using the endangered humphead wrasse to conserve coral reefs

Abstract

Extinction risk is closely tied to body size, home range, and species distribution. Quantifying home range is critical for conservation, and can enable the use of concepts such as 'umbrella species', whose conservation protects other species due to shared habitat. To determine the value of the humphead wrasse as an umbrella species for coral reef conservation, we conducted a multi-year study of humphead wrasse home range at Palmyra Atoll, Central Tropical Pacific, tagging juvenile, female, and male individuals with acoustic transmitters. We quantified home range using 2 metrics, length and area, and determined if these metrics were related to the sex and maturity status of the individual. We recorded individual movements during 5030 fishdays, yielding detailed records for 14 individuals comprising 3 juveniles, 5 females, and 6 males. The home range of humphead wrasse measured over a 2 yr study was 0.4 to 14 km and changed with ontogeny. Females had larger home ranges than other reef fishes studied to date (n = 68), indicating value as an umbrella species for coral reefs. We compared the home range of the species to the size distribution of tropical marine protected areas (MPAs), and used a model to estimate the MPA length necessary to retain humphead wrasse. Most MPAs are too small to effectively protect the humphead wrasse.

Movement patterns of juvenile hawksbill turtles Eretmochelys imbricata at a Caribbean coral atoll: long-term tracking using passive acoustic telemetry

“…Of particular interest were individual-level variations in movement patterns, which leads to further questions regarding how the regional population uses this habitat and the ecological mechanisms underlying different behaviors. This evidence adds to that found in other sites within the Caribbean (Moncada et al 2012, Revuelta et al 2015, suggesting that locally increased marine protection in the area might positively impact this species and also lead to hawksbills being used as an alternate umbrella species for coral reefs (Weng et al 2015).…”

Spatial separation without territoriality in shark communities

“…The incision was closed with a single suture and the shark was released. Shark movements were tracked by a network of over 70 underwater listening stations (VR2Ws) that were strategically positioned within all habitat types around the atoll and downloaded annually (for details see Papastamatiou et al 2015, Weng et al 2015. The complete set of receivers were only in place from 2010, so we analyzed data from blacktip reef sharks tagged prior to 2010 separately.…”

Parrotfish movement patterns vary with spatiotemporal scale

“…We maintain a large array of Vemco VR2W receivers at Palmyra Atoll (Weng et al 2015). We increased the receiver array (from that shown in Weng et al 2015) at the Western Terrace with 5 receivers placed 100 m apart in 2013 ( Fig.…”

“…We maintain a large array of Vemco VR2W receivers at Palmyra Atoll (Weng et al 2015). We increased the receiver array (from that shown in Weng et al 2015) at the Western Terrace with 5 receivers placed 100 m apart in 2013 ( Fig. 1C), basing spacing of the receivers on reported receiver detection ranges in shallow coral reef habitat (Welsh et al 2012) and reported extents of movement for this species (Welsh & Bellwood 2012b).…”