Southern Leyte Coral Reef Conservation Project - September 2006 update
Added to website: 03 October 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.
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.Many of our experienced volunteers left us at the start of this month. However, new volunteers soon arrived and began dive training followed by science training. We now have a couple of dive teams ready to survey well into next month.
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.orgThroughout the month we have completed several Reef Check surveys next to the MPA at Sta Sofia as part of the international Reef Check program.
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.Following completion of the MPA surveys last month, a set of questionnaires was also completed by local fishermen of their opinions of the MPAs. Both the dive survey and questionnaire data appear promising and a full analysis is underway. When complete we will present our findings.
Education and Community Projects
More than 1000 volunteers turned out for a clean-up of Maasin City waters on Saturday 16th September as part of the International Coastal Clean-up 2006 (ICC). The event aimed to raise awareness of the need to protect the marine environment. Volunteers gave their time to assist with the clean-up that was made possible by the collaboration of numerous organisations including the Provincial Government Office, the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Management Office, PSAO, PDMO and OCAS from the City of Maasin, Coral Cay Conservation, GTZ-EnRD and the Philippine Information Agency. Over 800 students attended from St. Joseph’s College, Maasin and the College of Maasin. A team of CCC staff and volunteers joined in and CCC lent SCUBA equipment to local divers who worked on clearing an underwater area in front of the market area. A second team from CCC went to the local beach at Tangka’an to assist with a clean-up there.
On Sunday 23rd September, CCC held an open day for the Maasin Diocesan Action Group for the Environment. The group is already involved in conservation work allied to forestry and agriculture and in the past has been instrumental in re-planting mangrove forests. They also wish to branch out into marine science and educate people within their diocese. The open day involved a basic introduction to marine ecology followed by presentations by CCC staff and volunteers on biodiversity, ecosystem interactions, threats to the reef and environmental protection and management. Some participants also enjoyed a snorkel on a local reef. We even threw in a Fred the Fish Show to show them a method we use to teach children about threats to the reef and solutions to protect it. The day was a great success and we hope to carry out further work with the group in the future.
Our Education Officer, Karen Holman has left us this month to return to the UK but we aim to continue the good work she set in place. On Saturday 30th September Reef Rangers from St James College, Burgos completed a morning session working up their data from their survey inside the MPA at Sta. Sofia last month. Two posters of results were produced that will be presented to their fellow classmates in due course. The Reef Rangers hope to survey an area outside the MPA next so it canbe compared to their survey inside the MPA.
Fig. 1: Some of the 1000 volunteers who turned out to help with the coastal clean-up at Maasin.
Fig. 2: The Maasin Diocesan Action Group for the Environment at the end of their day with CCC learning about tropical reef ecology and protection.
CCC, in conjunction with members of the Perse School group who were here last month, has completed painting a mural in the municipal building of Padre Burgos. The mural takes the shape of Burgos and Limasawa and includes some of the most eye-catching species that can be seen on the local reefs. Students from two local schools, St. James’ College, Padre Burgos and San Roque NHS also came to help by painting pictures of reef fish on the adjacent wall. It is hoped that those who see the mural will be reminded of the special environment that sits on their doorstep and that it is worth protecting for future generations.
The words included with the mural will be written in English and Visayan and will read, “The coral reefs around the shores of Padre Burgos, Limasawa and the Philippines are some of the most diverse reefs in the whole world. Coral is an animal. Destruction of corals and over-fishing can kill a coral reef, leaving no fish in the sea. A healthy, protected reef can provide bountiful resources. The Marine Protected Areas around our shores aim to protect reef areas and provide resources now and for future generations.”
Coral Cay is also undertaking a project to construct signs that will be placed by each of the four local MPAs: Buenavista, Tangka’an, Sta. Sofia and Lungsoda’an. The signs will include information on the dangerous creatures near the shore areas. We regularly see the local children playing with blue-ringed octopus and sea snakes, both of which can kill humans. The signs will also detail, in visayan why the MPAs have been established.
Fig. 3: The main section of the mural in the municipal building of Padre Burgos
Interesting/Unusual Sightings
CCC divers have reported some new exciting sightings over the past few weeks. Pilot whales and dolphins have been seen out in Sogod Bay. It is always a pleasure to see these charismatic, marine mammals swimming alongside the boat. During our dives inside some of the MPAs we have been seeing lots of large snappers and sweetlips. In time these will breed and produce more fish that will move outside the MPAs for fishermen to catch.
We have also seen a large diversity of gobies over the past few weeks which have many different lifestyles. The goby family is the most diverse of all fish families with over 1,600 species worldwide. Some gobies such as Randall’s Goby, Amblyeleotris randalli have evolved a special relationship with nearly blind shrimp from the genus Alpheus. The shrimp dig burrows in the sand up to 4ft long which they use as a home together with the goby. The shrimp benefits because the goby alerts it to danger and may drop pieces of food. The goby gains a free home. This special relationship is called a mutualistic symbiotic relationship.
Other gobies have evolved to look like crabs in an attempt to deter predators such as the signal goby, Signiogobius biocellatus. Another species seen regularly is the maiden, or orange-dashed goby, Valencienna puellaris. These brightly coloured fish are often seen in pairs on the seabed eating large mouthfuls of sand from which they filter out the food before passing the sand out over their gills.
Fig. 4: Randall’s goby in its burrow entrance. The shrimp has retreated inside. (Photo: Hew Dalrymple Hamilton)
Coral Cay Conservation provides resources to help sustain livelihoods and alleviate poverty through the protection, restoration and management of coral reefs and tropical forests.
