Vital Sign Monitoring: Marine Fish

Found throughout the Pacific Island Network, convict tangs (Acanthurus sandvicensis) are a common sight near reefs

Description & Rational
Fish are a major component of the coral reef ecosystem, this highly diverse assemblage of carnivores, planktivores, herbivores and detritovores serve a variety of ecological functions. Fish assemblages affect ecosystem structure, productivity and sustainability and selected species can also act as indicators of general reef health and provide a warning of environmental stress and potential ecosystem change. Additionally, fish within the parks are harvested in traditional, subsistence, artisanal and recreational fisheries which may affect the species composition, abundance and size of targeted species. Fishing is increasingly being recognized as the principal threat to Pacific coral reefs and other marine ecosystems worldwide. In this respect, it is highly probable that most of the Pacific Island parks can be categorized as “impaired” to “seriously impaired” in terms of their fish communities. While the harvest of fish is addressed in a separate complementary (fisheries-dependent) protocol, data collected here will contribute to the overall analyses by providing an in-water (fisheries-independent) assessment of the size and abundance of harvested species within park waters.

Brief Monitoring Questions & Objectives
Question: For coral reef fishes, what are long-term trends in the abundance and biomass of key reef slope species of ecological, cultural or harvest significance at selected sites along an isobath of 10-20 m depth?
Objectives: Annually determine the density and biomass of the defined component of the reef fish assemblage at randomly selected sites along an isobath of 10-20 m depth.

Vital Sign Monitoring Status & Trends
The Marine Fish monitoring protocol is in development and is scheduled for peer review in September 2008.

Products and Related Links:

• Protocol Documents (in development)

Education and Outreach

Moray eel (Muraenidae spp.) sticks its head out of its rock and coral shelter at War in the Pacific National Park

• Marine Fish Monitoring Movie – Coming Soon!

• Marine Fish Monitoring Photo Gallery - Coming Soon!

Contact Information
Project Manager
Lawrence Basch, Marine Ecologist
Pacific Island Network, I&M Program
National Park Service
University of Hawaii Manoa, Honolulu, HI 96822
larry_basch <at> nps.gov