Spillover effect of Marine Protected Areas: an assessment of fishing exclusion areas around Conservation Units

Abstract

The contribution of this project involves evaluating the use of simple methods that can be applied in any Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) for possible estimation, delineation and expansion of fishing exclusion areas around emerged landmarks (eg islands, parcels or slabs). The expectation is to be able to redefine the size of AMPs by expanding the exclusion zone. As a model Conservation Unity, the Anchieta Island State Park (PEIA) is proposed for the evaluation of the model's effectiveness in suggesting the extension of the park boundaries to the adjacent marine area. To fulfill this objective, three main steps are proposed: 1 - characterize the habitats of the region surrounding the PEIA, through lateral scanning sonar; 2 - verify if there is exportation of biomass from the current fishing exclusion area to the adjacent areas, at distance levels associated with the identified habitats, by: a - estimating the accumulated abundance and biomass values and detecting abundance gradients of the edge of the exclusion zone decreasing from its distance (1000 and 3000 m); b - the recapture of specimens outside the edge of the fishing exclusion zone and the construction of single season models, which can produce estimates of probability of occupation of adjacent areas by distance. It is also proposed to study the behavior of key species as a way to verify the use of the area in their life cycles. (AU)