Southern Leyte Coral Reef Conservation Project: December 2006 update
Added to website: 16 January 2007
Project Brief
Aim
The Southern Leyte Coral Reef Conservation Project (SLCRCP) is a six-year collaborative project (2002–2008), to survey the coral reefs of Sogod Bay. The programme provides training and conservation education opportunities for local Filipinos, as part of an integrated programme to develop local capacity and ensure the long-term protection and sustainable use of marine resources throughout the region..
Location
Sogod Bay, Southern Leyte, South-Eastern Philippines.
CCC Partners
CCC is working at the invitation of and in partnership with the Provincial Government of Southern Leyte and the Philippine Reef & Rainforest Conservation Foundation Inc (PRRCFI).
Marine Science Programme
Background: Our baseline surveying programme is designed to gather data about the biological and morphological standing of Sogod Bay. These data are combined with information on human and natural impacts on the reefs, along with oceanographic data, to ultimately produce a Geographical Information System ‘map’ of the various habitats of the bay. It is like a ‘stock-take’ of the current marine resources, which is being produced to provide policymakers and concerned institutions with information necessary to effectively manage those resources. To date, the northern end of Sogod Bay has been surveyed, and the remainder of the project will concentrate on the south and Limasawa Island. If you would like more information on our surveying rationale or methodology, please don’t hesitate to contact our Project Scientist.This month we have had a complete change over of volunteers leaving us with very few surveyors at the beginning of the month and yet another disruption caused by Typhoon Durian. However, we persevered, surveying as and when we could and brought another baseline transect to completion.
| Transect | Barangay | Site | Start Depth | Finish Depth |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| B0525G | Tangka’an | North Ampo Reef | 25.7 | 1.8 |
ReefCheck
Background: Based at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), ReefCheck is the name of both the world’s largest coral reef monitoring network and of the common methodology used, allowing the comparison of results from various locations worldwide. Although less detailed than CCC’s baseline surveys, the ReefCheck method is effective for monitoring changes in reef health over time. CCC is proud to be a major contributing member of ReefCheck. Check out their site at www.ReefCheck.orgAs usual we have completed several Reef Check surveys this month, both on the reef at Ampo and at Sta. Sofia MPA. The Reef Check organisation have expressed their pleasure that we are contributing a large quantity of surveys to their ongoing global reef monitoring program.
Education and Community Projects
The Dangerous Animals signs are finally complete and shall soon be delivered to the local Barangay Captains. Our thanks goes to all the CCC volunteers who assisted with their construction and design, especially Jules for the original artwork and Polly for her tireless efforts to complete the painting by Christmas! It is hoped that these signs will prevent the local children from handling potentially fatal animals whilst also educating people about the need for Fish Sanctuaries.
Near the start of December, the Reef Rangers of San Roque National High School completed their data analysis from their Sta. Sofia MPA surveys. The pupils’ surveys demonstrated clear differences in the abundance of fishes, with more found inside the MPA compared to outside. Coral damage was also greater outside the MPA compared to inside. The posters are now on display in the school and will highlight the importance of MPAs to the other pupils.
Although no MPA surveys have taken place this month, presentations were given to Barangays Tangka’an and Buenavista regarding the findings of the surveys completed earlier this year. In addition, we took the opportunity to meet with some of the local fishermen at these meetings and receive feedback from them on their perception of the MPAs, how to improve the management and any concerns they may have. In general the local people are accepting the MPAs but more education and resources appear to be required. In particular is the problem of guarding the MPAs and the need for patrol boats has been raised several times. Applications for such funding are in preparation and it is hoped that the problems of illegal fishing will soon be a thing of the past and the MPAs can flourish even more.
On Sunday 17th December, CCC held a Christmas party for some of the local children from Tangka’an and Sta. Sofia. The afternoon was filled with fun and games and even included a visit from Father Christmas himself. Games included pass the parcel, musical chairs, lucky dip, splat the rat, coconut shy and throw a wet sponge at the CCC staff! Extra activities included trying out SCUBA gear in a dunk tank and Christmas card making. Needless to say, everyone enjoyed themselves immensely and had a great afternoon. Thanks to everyone who attended and helped out.
The CCC staff and volunteers were fortunate enough to be invited to Governor Lerias’ Christmas Party at the Capitol Building in Ma’asin City on Friday 22nd December. The evening was full of fun and entertainment, not least from viewing the climax of the departmental Christmas Carol singing competition from our front row seats. The evening provided CCC staff and volunteers with a chance to talk informally with our colleagues from the Provincial Government and for the volunteers to experience the wonderful hospitality extended to us by our hosts. We would like to thank Governor Lerias and her colleagues for a wonderful evening.
Interesting/Unusual Sightings
This month we have been very fortunate in locating a pair of mandarin fish (Synchiropus splendidus) on our home reef. The two fish have been seen on several occasions on the same piece of tabulate coral. Mandarin fish, although small, make up for this by being one of the most colourful and vibrant fish on the reef. They are seldom seen during the day, preferring to emerge at dawn and dusk. However, on dark overcast days they will often emerge early, to the delight of any diver lucky enough to catch a glimpse. I was pleased to identify a further tiny reef resident recently when I saw my first rubble dwarfgoby (Trimma naudei). Only growing to 3cm in length, these tiny red, white and blue fish can be very secretive but add a further splash of colour to the darker corners of the reef.
Close to the MPA at Lungsoda’an a bumphead parrotfish (Bulbometopon muricatum) was seen by a pair of our volunteers. These fish can grow to 1.3m in length and play an important role in reef ecology. The fish graze on the hard corals, excreting them as sand that eventually washes up on the beaches. Increasingly rare due to overfishing, it is excellent to see these fish still in the municipality of Padre Burgos.
At the end of the month a group of CCC staff and volunteers returned to Sonuk Point to survey the whale sharks in the region. Four individuals were sighted during the morning including a pair that remained at the surface with the snorkellers for over 15 minutes before swimming away. The photographs taken will be added to the CCC collection to be sent to the Sharks Trust (www.sharktrust.org) later in January.
Finally all of the staff and volunteers at the CCC Southern Leyte Reef Conservation Project extend our best wishes for the New Year to all our colleagues and past expedition members in both the Philippines and United Kingdom. We look forward to another productive and successful year in 2007 moving toward our goal of protecting and managing the amazing marine resources that Southern Leyte is so lucky to possess.
Coral Cay Conservation provides resources to help sustain livelihoods and alleviate poverty through the protection, restoration and management of coral reefs and tropical forests.
