Science Advisory Report 2019/033
Review of ecosystem features, indicators and surveys for ecological monitoring of the Banc-des-Américains Marine Protected Area
Summary
- The ecosystem features, anthropogenic pressures, indicators and monitoring tools presented were analyzed in relation to the overarching goal of the Banc-des-Américains MPA and its conservation objectives (CO), to ensure that they provide relevant information for adaptive management of the MPA.
- Two types of indicators for the selected ecosystem features have been identified:
- Indirect indicators that allow assessing the state of the MPA ecosystem and interpreting changes in direct indicators, but do not allow possible changes to be directly linked to MPA management measures;
- Direct indicators which provide information on the status and trends of communities, habitats and species of interest related to the COs. These indicators can be used to measure the performance of the MPA against the COs as well as the effectiveness of the management measures.
- For CO1 related to benthic habitats, indicators (n=9) were identified to monitor the following ecosystem features: epibenthic and demersal communities, commercial species and substrate characteristics.
- For CO2 related to pelagic habitats (phytoplankton, zooplankton and forage species), all of the proposed indicators (n=8) are indirect ones. Monitoring these indicators is essential in order to describe the environmental conditions influencing the ecosystem and attempt to explain the changes observed in the Banc-des-Américains MPA. According to this logic, indicators (n=3) for monitoring the physicochemical characteristics of the water have also been identified, even though this feature is not directly related to a CO.
- For CO3 related to species at risk, the selected indicators (n=4) allow the monitoring of whale species at risk and the Atlantic wolffish.
- Anthropogenic pressures in the Banc-des-Américains MPA that could affect the achievement of COs have been identified: invasive species, noise and disturbance, collisions and entanglements, commercial fisheries and pollution. Nine indicators have been selected to monitor these pressures, with the exception of pollution, for which baseline knowledge is lacking.
- Endobenthic and suprabenthic communities and capelin have been retained as ecosystem features. However, no monitoring indicators could be selected owing to the significant gaps in baseline knowledge or the lack of current sampling methods for these indicators.
- To facilitate the implementation of an effective monitoring plan, it is recommended to select indicators that are or could be measured by using existing partner or DFO monitoring programs, such as the Atlantic Zone Monitoring Program (AZMP) and multispecies surveys,. Existing surveys have the advantage of covering long time series and may include monitoring conducted within and outside the MPA. However, new surveys will be required to ensure adequate monitoring.
- Research bottom trawl surveys conducted in the Banc-des-Américains MPA provide relevant data for the benthic and demersal indicators.
This Science Advisory Report is from the May 22–23, 2018 regional peer review meeting on the Review of the indicators and recommendations of an Ecological Monitoring Plan for the Banc-des-Américains proposed MPA. Additional publications from this meeting will be posted on the Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) Science Advisory Schedule as they become available.
Accessibility Notice
This document is available in PDF format. If the document is not accessible to you, please contact the Secretariat to obtain another appropriate format, such as regular print, large print, Braille or audio version.
- Date modified: