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SEMINAR: MBF 602 Seminar- Brittany Huntington Friday, March 26th, 2010 4:00pm S/A seminar room

From: Cary Rios <crios@rsmas.miami.edu>
Subject: SEMINAR: MBF 602 Seminar- Brittany Huntington Friday, March 26th, 2010 4:00pm S/A seminar room
Date: Wed, 24 Mar 2010 15:03:29 -0500

New contributions from landscape ecology to improve marine reserve assessment and management

 

  Distinguishing management effects from natural variability in a system is a key consideration in assessing the efficacy of reserves.  Here, I demonstrate how seascape heterogeneity, defined as the spatial configuration, composition, and structure of coral reef habitats, can mask our ability to discern reserve effects on target marine communities.  In response, I test the application of a novel landscape approach to account for this heterogeneity. Seascape metrics were quantified using a combination of remote sensing, spatial image analysis and in situ surveys at 87 patch reef sites in Glover’s Reef Lagoon, Belize, within and outside the boundaries of a no-take marine reserve established in 1990.  Metrics that correlated significantly to observed variations in both fish and coral community compositions were used to cluster patch reef sites into groups sharing similar seascape attributes.  Reserve effects were then evaluated within seascape groups and compared to pooled assessments with no control for seascape structure.  Significant reserve effects for both fish and coral communities were revealed only when sites were classified by seascape group.  These findings suggest that the application of a seascape classification approach not only improves our ability to distinguish marine reserve effects from natural variability across the seascape but furthers our understanding of the influences of seascape structure on the coral community.

 

 

Brittany Huntington

University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA),  B.S. Marine Biology, 2002

San Francisco State University, M.S. Marine Science, 2006

Entered PhD program: Fall 2007

Advisor: Dr. Diego Lirman

 

Cary Rios
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