Distribution of the New Zealand scallop (Pecten novaezealandiae) within and surrounding a customary fisheries area

作者：Twist Brenton A; Hepburn Christopher D; Rayment William J

来源：ICES Journal of Marine Science, 2016, 73(2): 384-393.

DOI：10.1093/icesjms/fsv228

• customary management
• distribution
• habitat modelling
• indigenous fisheries
• MPAs
• New Zealand
• partial protected areas
• Pecten novaezealandiae
• scallop

Ecosystem-based approaches towards fisheries management, incorporating spatial management, have recently been advocated as the most appropriate pathway towards sustainable fisheries. Customary fisheries management, which often incorporates forms of spatial management, could be an important tool for engaging ecosystem fisheries approaches in practice. This study measured habitat characteristics and the density of the scallop Pecten novaezealandiae across a range of management regimes in Te Whaka a Te Wera (Paterson Inlet), Rakiura (Stewart Island), New Zealand. These regimes included (i) a customary fisheries area (Te Whaka a Te Wera Mataitai) managed locally under a traditional closure to scallop harvest (rahui), (ii) a complete closure to all harvest and anthropogenic disturbances (Te Wharawhara/Ulva Island Marine Reserve), and (iii) an area open to recreational harvest of scallops by hand gathering over a limited season. Habitat characteristics and scallop numbers were measured using strip-transect and photoquadrat surveys at 20 sites within TeWhaka a TeWera in June 2013. Negative binomial regression modelling was used to relate the counts of scallops to management regime and habitat characteristics. Scallops were likely to be at a higher density in the customary fisheries management area than in the marine reserve and the recreational harvest area. Pecten novaezealandiae were likely to be at a higher density with increasing distance from the inlet entrance, which is likely to be a proxy for a gradient of habitat or environment variables. Scallops were also likely to be at lower densities in areas of high macroalgal cover, perhaps reflective of adult scallops avoiding areas with significant algal cover. Our study showed that customary fisheries areas can provide effective refugia for scallops, provided they protect appropriate habitat.

• 出版日期2016-2