No effects of abiotic and anthropogenic factors on reef-associated neonate shark abundance within a shark nursery-area system
Bouyoucos, I.A., Simpfendorfer, C.A., Schwieterman, G.D., Eustache, K.P., Thiault, Lauric, Planes, S., and Rummer, J.L. (2024) No effects of abiotic and anthropogenic factors on reef-associated neonate shark abundance within a shark nursery-area system. Marine and Freshwater Research, 75. MF24080.
|
PDF (Published Version)
- Published Version
Available under License Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives. Download (1MB) | Preview |
Abstract
Context: Coastal habitats function as shark nursery areas; however, coastal habitats can experience extreme variation in abiotic conditions and are susceptible to human disturbances. Aims: Drivers of abundance were tested within a shark nursery-area system in two populations of reef-associated neonate sharks, namely, blacktip reef sharks (Carcharhinus melanopterus) and sicklefin lemon sharks (Negaprion acutidens).
Methods: Catch data from a fisheries-independent gill-net survey (n = 90 sets from October 2018 to March 2019) at 10 sites around Moorea, French Polynesia, were used to test for associations between shark abundance and abiotic conditions (temperature, oxygen, pH, salinity, lunar phase and depth). Historical levels of fin-fish fishing effort, trampling (i.e. human movement through habitat), and coastal artificialisation (i.e. walls and embankments) estimated for each site were used to test for anthropogenic effects on shark abundance.
Key results: There were no effects of any abiotic or anthropogenic factor on abundance of either species. Conclusions: Previous work corroborates our findings by demonstrating neonate sharks' physiological tolerance to extreme abiotic conditions and high survival in response to anthropogenic stressors. Alternatively, populations are already degraded from decades of coastal development.
Implications: These data can aid in predicting the use of coastal habitats as shark nursery areas.
| Item ID: | 84796 |
|---|---|
| Item Type: | Article (Research - C1) |
| ISSN: | 1448-6059 |
| Keywords: | blacktip reef shark, catch-per-unit-effort, coastal development, fishing pressure, human disturbance, sicklefin lemon shark, temperature, young-of-the-year |
| Related URLs: | |
| Copyright Information: | © 2024 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND) |
| Funders: | Australian Research Council (ARC) |
| Projects and Grants: | ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, ARC DE150101266 |
| Date Deposited: | 04 Mar 2025 22:43 |
| More Statistics |
Actions (Repository Staff Only)
 |
Item Control Page |