Assessing effective protection of reef fishes and associated habitats in a long-established Mediterranean Marine Protected AreaScience to Policy

Dominique Pelletier¹, Manon Troucelier¹, Marc Bouchoucha¹, Benoist De Vogue¹

¹French Institute for the Exploitation of the Sea (Ifremer)

Marine Protected Areas (MPA) have become a central instrument of conservation policies for the global ocean. In 2022, the 30 by 30 target (i.e. protecting 30% of the planet’s marine and coastal ecosystems by 2030) was agreed at the COP15 meeting of the Convention on Biological Diversity, and also became a target of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, and is as well targeted for the Sustainable Development Goal 14 (Life below water). However, beyond coverage targets, it is necessary to ensure that the designed MPA meet conservation objectives, as protection success is not only about size. In 2014, IUCN devised the Green List Standard whereby a certified MPA is recognised as achieving good governance, sound design and planning, effective management and successful conservation outcomes. The Côte Bleue Marine Parc (CBMP) located on the French Mediterranean coast has been on the Green List since 2014. Also a Natura 2000 area, it offers a wide variety of landscapes and mosaic habitats (Posidonia meadow, coral reefs, caves) which are home to a high biodiversity and many protected species. The MPA comprises two no-take reserves, Carry-le-Rouet and Cap-Couronne, which were respectively created in 1986 and 1996. The objective of this study is to provide alternative insights on the protection effects afforded by the CBMP, by utilising highly replicated data enabling to assess the status of the fish assemblage in the different habitats encountered in the CBMP, and distinguishing the two reserves, Carry-le-Rouet being older than Cap Couronne. The data were collected in 2010, 2011 and 2019, using the unbaited underwater video STAVIRO protocol. The results indicate, among others, a positive effect of the two reserves on abundance density and species richness, especially for fished species. Additionally, overall abundance density increased between the two periods. Spatial and temporal differences illustrate nuances between the two reserves.