Southern Leyte Coral Reef Conservation Project: July 2006 update
Added to website: 11 August 2006
Project Brief
Aim
The Southern Leyte Coral Reef Conservation Project (SLCRCP) is a three-year collaborative project (2002–2005), 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.p>
Location
Sogod Bay, Southern Leyte, South-Eastern Philippines.
Project 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
Baseline SurveysBackground: 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.
The Habagat has really affected our ability to do many baseline surveys. On the better weather days we have been across to East Limasawa and done surveys in this area. We are happy with the recovery of the reefs there after last years outbreak of Crown of Thorns Starfish.
This month, we have been concentrating out efforts on the M.P.A surveys around the municipality.
Marine Protected Area (M.P.A)Assessments
Background: Over our last 18 months here we have help set up and protect 4 M.P.A’s or fish ‘Sanctuaries’ around the municipality of Padre Burgos: Lungsoda’an, Sta. Sofia, Tangka’an, and Buenavista. These sanctuaries help protect fish until they are large enough to swim further in search of food. When they do, they will leave the sanctuary and be available to be fished. This means that the fish caught are larger but also more abundant because they have had the protection over the time needed to reach sexual maturity and reproduction. Our primary assessments occurred around a year ago and the monitoring will help us to assess the impact this protection has had on the reefs.
We aim to do at least 5 surveys at 2 depths in each M.P.A and a similar number just outside each, to be able to compare and contrast the differences. This will give us 10 data sets for each M.P.A to be able to compare to last years results.
So far we have completed 6 surveys in Lungsoda’an, 3 in Sta. Sofia, 2 in Buenavista and none in Tangka’an and all the results look really promising.
Over the month of August, a school group from Cambridge, England is joining us at Ampo. This group along with other volunteers will be concentrating their efforts on the M.P.A surveys. We have the largest number of volunteers on site ever, and work will be swift. We are also conducting socio-economic surveys in each of the respective Barangays to get an impression of the community opinions and knowledge of the MPA’s.
We hope to complete our surveys with this large group and publish our findings to you in the near future.
Education and Community Projects
Our education team has been working hard this month and the new SEASTARS award scheme is well under way. CCC has worked together with the Southern Leyte Department of Education to introduce a scheme which will raise awareness and increase the inclusion of marine ecology and coral reef conservation in the high school science curriculum. CCC put together a teacher training package and invited science teachers from schools all over Southern Leyte to work with the science team and Education co-ordinator Karen Holman.On the weekends of the 8th and 15th July, over 40 teachers attended the teacher training days, some travelling for many hours to participate. The day comprised of a series of lectures in coral reef ecology, the importance of the biodiversity of Sogod Bay, threats to the reef and actions that can be taken to protect the coral reef. All of the lectures were closely linked to the science curriculum and accompanying each lecture were practical lesson resources, for the teachers to use back in their own classrooms. Each teacher was provided with a CD-ROM containing all the teaching materials. The training days ended with a snorkel out over the reef to try to identify some of the living organisms, a new and fascinating experience for many of the teachers. We feel a great day was had by all and a lot learnt. Feedback on the teacher training was positive with teachers requesting more of such training.
We are hoping that the teachers will then follow on to the next stage of the SEASTAR scheme which requires schools to then incorporate lessons with a marine conservation focus to their students. Another level of the scheme aims at getting students actively involved in the protection of the reef by enrolling in the ‘Reef Ranger’ program. This allows selected students to be taught by our science staff in the means and methods required to survey local reefs. The intention is that Reef Ranger Teams will become responsible for monitoring a small area of reef in their Barangay.
Fig 1: Cat, part of the science team, assists with identification with a group of teachers.
Fig 2: Jan, CCC’s Chief Technical Advisor, works with the teachers looking at threats to the reef.
Fig 3: Olly’s school visit.
The first REEF RANGER training weekend was held on July 29th and 30th. 20 children were selected from San Roque NHS and St. James’ College, P. Burgos, to attend a weekend at Ampo to learn how to identify species and then conduct shallow snorkel surveys on their local reefs. All the children enjoyed the weekend, including 3 separate sessions in the water, and then passed the tests with sufficient scores to allow them to become the 1st group of Reef Rangers in Southern Leyte.
We hope that now the schools and their students will arrange survey days themselves, collect their data and present it in poster form around their schools and Barangays. CCC will be on hand to help provide snorkel gear and assistance in the water as required. This Reef Ranger scheme should help continue the survey work and reef assessment once CCC has moved on.
Fig 4: All the qualified Reef Rangers with the education team, Jan, Karen and Olly.
Interesting/Unusual Sightings
I am very excited to report that that some major sightings have occurred in the surrounding areas by CCC volunteers, staff and its local friends.We have spotted both of our big friendly fish, the Bumphead Parrotfish, Bulbmetopon muricatum and the Humphead Wrasse, Cheilinus undulates. Both of these are large slow moving fish that have great impact on the reef ecosystem. The Parrotfish eat the algae that grow on corals and also deposit fine silty, sand that helps make up our beautiful beaches. It was spotted just off Medicare is Sta. Sofia, P. Burgos. The wrasse prey on Crown on Thorns, a poisonous seastar that feeds on corals, and other large inverts. The Wrasse is protected by law, as it is hunted for its large lips that are a delicacy on the Japanese market; it was spotted twice this month. A large adult was seen cruising along the reef at Ampo; the second was spotted in Napantau M.P.A in San Francisco.
Also we dived Lungsoda’an M.P.A recently, and all divers were really impressed with the state of the reef and the general size of the fish. Large Sweetlips, Snappers, and Groupers were seen as well as a large variety of Butterflyfish and a turtle which all shows a great diversity and health of the reef.
We also spotted a very rare and cool fish, the Ornate Ghost Pipefish Solenostomus paradoxus. Closely related to seahorses, this weird and wonderful fish is very camouflaged and very hard to spot as it mimics the feather star that is lives in; it can even change colour to adapt to its surroundings.
