WHAT DO THE RESERVES IN ST. LUCIA AND CAPE CANAVERAL TELL US?
One of the most difficult scientific and political questions in MPA planning is that of whether no-take marine reserves can serve to increase fish catches in surrounding fished areas. This effect — achieved when larval or adult fish exit a reserve — often becomes a central issue both for reserve planners and for stakeholders affected by pending closures, particularly fishermen. When future “spillover” of fish out of a reserve is assumed, support for a reserve can be high among fishermen. But with few real-life demonstrations of the spillover effect existing in the scientific literature, how sure can planners and stakeholders be that it will happen? The authors of a paper published in Science magazine on November 30 say that two sites they have studied show the spillover effect is real, and that reserves can play a key role in supporting fisheries. Lead author Callum Roberts of the University of York (UK) hopes the findings “will help remove a major logjam in the debate.” (Co-authors
