IUCN SPECIALIST GROUP OF GROUPERS AND WRASSES

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1 IUCN SPECIALIST GROUP OF GROUPERS AND WRASSES NEWSHEET No. 6 (July 2003) Introduction Contents Introduction Message from the Chair News from Japan News from Brazil News from Mexico News from SCRFA Miscellaneous Publications/websites of interest Welcome to newsletter number 6 of the IUCN Specialist Group on Groupers and Wrasses. There is quite a diverse mix of items, from regions that are situated on opposite ends of the earth! Far apart they may be, but whether the issues are re-stocking or conservation, there is much to be learned from the approaches others take to solving problems. Let me know about any initiatives you are involved in, field trips you have undertaken, interesting websites you have encountered, any images you may want to share I will make a call for items around November again. Many thanks to those of you who sent items for this edition Editor: Sean Fennessy seanf@ori.org.za Message from the Chair We have been busy since the last newsletter, the most important news being that we are finally moving on our species assessments. Concerned by our slow progress Andy Cornish and I recruited 4 students at the University of Hong Kong to work with Andy through more than 40 species assessments this summer, and they are doing a marvellous job. There is also a biologist in Australia, David Fairclough, working with several labrids and who is completing 4 assessments with us. With all the information being collected, we will also be able to get back to our Specialist Group website to beef up the species descriptions and give it the overhaul it badly needs. If any of you have species assessments you plan to complete in this next year, or other items for the website, please let me know since we do not want to duplicate efforts going on elsewhere; if I hear 1

2 nothing then I will assume there are no forthcoming assessments. The forms I circulated make the assessment process pretty straightforward but if anyone is having problems do let me know. In addition to these ongoing assessments we also managed to get a number of additional ones in to IUCN by the deadline, such as Epinephelus striatus (the 1996 assessments all need to be updated so they must all be redone), global and regional assessments of Polyprion americanus, and Epinephelus akaara. Earlier this year I participated in a meeting organized by part of the marine programme of IUCN in collaboration with The Ocean Conservancy on a new IUCN theme of Shattering the Myth. The focus of this meeting was to better develop the marine programme, in particular to raise awareness about threatened marine fish species. One aspect of this initiative is to examine closely some basic and widespread assumptions about resilience in marine fish species such as their high fecundity, wide geographic distribution, and population regenerative capacity, all of which are assumed to make them less vulnerable to extinction (i.e. the myth). If we examine each of these attributes closely, there is, however, little evidence to suggest that theyreduce the threat of extinction relative to other species groups. A few of the references included in this newsletter cover this topic. I am happy to report good news from a meeting this March in Manila: the Second International Tropical Marine Eco-Systems Management Symposium (ITMEMS2 see and go to p. 15). This is a meeting that focuses more on the management of reef-associated resources than the science and it produced a Call for Action that will be circulated in international forums for the protection of reef fish spawning aggregations (for full text of this see Newsletter number 2 on the SCRFA website: - the newsletter also has some other news on groupers that might be of general interest). This is good for our aggregating groupers and wrasses since protection of spawning aggregations has been attracting considerable interest and may be the most realistic/practical way of conserving some of these species. I will keep everyone updated on progress in this area. We continue our work with the humphead wrasse, Cheilinus undulatus, and our big synopsis, the combined efforts of a number of our group members, has finally been submitted for review. This is a summary of all the trade, fishery and biological data that we could collect over about 6 years and provides a very strong statement, we feel, of the threats to this species and its declines in many key areas of its range. I am still hopeful that there might be another proposal submitted to CITES for an Appendix II listing at the next COP can any of you work towards this possibility with your respective country governments? I should like to see our SG become more active and would welcome suggestions for projects and also of workers who might be interested in participating in this Specialist Group. I will be reconstituting our membership shortly we are on a three-year cycle whereby we completely reorganize membership every three years and would like to include some keen and active members in the new group. Thanks to those of you who are submitting articles to the GWSG Newsletter and to those of you who have submitted information on individual species. My good wishes to you all and we look forward to hearing your news and views. Yvonne 2

3 News from Japan With the aim of stock enhancement of decreasing coral trout and grouper populations, the Japan Sea Farming Association is producing juveniles of Plectropomus leopardus, Epinephelus septemfasciatus, E. bruneus, and E. akaara at several stations in Japan. The juveniles are produced by spawning of adults in captivity, and, after checking for potential viral contamination, are released into the sea to increase the natural populations. The results for E. bruneus which have been released experimentally were presented orally at an annual meeting of the Japan Scientific Fisheries Society, held at Tokyo in April, According to their abstract (Hamada et al., 2003), individuals of 1 year old E. bruneus (average total length of 16.5 cm) were released on an artificial reef (80 x 60 m) near an island on the north-western side of Kyushu, Japan. Just after release, the juveniles gathered and hid underneath the rocks near the release point and did not disperse. Five days after release, they were fed pellets of compound feed. They came out from under the rocks and fed on the pellets (Figs. 1 and 2). The number of remaining juveniles was monitored underwater for 5 months and their growth was also monitored by collecting these fish using baited traps. The juveniles dispersed gradually, but nearly 100 tagged individuals were still recognized on and near the artificial reef after 5 months. The growth was faster in these released individuals than in individuals of the same cohort that were kept in a fish preserve and fed pellets of compound feed. It was strongly suggested that released individuals were able to feed, sooner or later, on natural prey when released in their natural habitat. Further research is underway to determine the effect of seedling release on stock enhancement. The authors are also hoping to establish what kind of impact the release of piscivorous fish such as E. bruneus will have on the reef fish community. Kumiko OKAMOTO (Oita Institute of Marine and Fisheries Science) grouper@roy.hi-ho.ne.jp Fig. 1. Soon after the pellets of compound feed were scattered near a large rock on the right side of the reef, more than 200 individuals of Epinephelus bruneus came out from a hole beneath the rock. Note the white spaghetti tags. (Photo taken 5 days after release). Fig. 2. The E. bruneus swam up into the water column to feed on the pellets even in their natural habitat, similarly to their behaviour in the fish preserve. (Photos by A. Nakazono: nakazono@agr.kyushu-u.ac.jp) 3

4 News about management and conservation of groupers in Brazil The lord of the rocks The lord of the rocks Epinephelus itajara is the first marine fish species to be protected in Brazil. A law signed by the President of the Brazilian Institute of Environment (IBAMA) in September, 2002, has prohibited the capture, transport and commercialization of this species for a period of 5 years. This was the result of an intense articulation between diverse sectors including government, academia and NGOs. A group calling itself the Inter-institutional group for the protection of meros, as the lord-of-the-rocks is known in Brazil, was created by the people and institutions involved. It represents an important step for conservation of groupers in Brazil. Although large groupers are endangered here as much as anywhere else, according to Brazilian federal legislation, marine fish, molluscs and crustaceans are considered fisheries resources and for this reason do not benefit from the same legislation that protects the rest of the terrestrial and aquatic fauna. Recognizing a fish species as endangered is the first step to change this situation. Earlier this year, however, the fisheries sector in the North of Brazil reacted and asked IBAMA for tolerance of a 5% incidental catch of Epinephelus itajara in the region. The species is caught as bycatch in a few important fisheries, including prawn trawl fisheries. With vast mangrove areas and a less densely inhabited coast, the northern coast of Brazil may be in many aspects a refuge for this and other species. The group for the protection of meros was included in the discussions that followed, and proposed as an alternative a tolerance of only 2% of meros in the total catches, a percentage that should fall by half each year until 0% in The group also proposed that onboard processing and commercialization should be banned and all fish caught should be used for research purposes only. The group is seeking funds to conduct a five year research programme that will include education and awareness campaigns, research and assessment of the status of the species using the IUCN RAMAS software. Beatrice Ferreira beatrice@ibama.gov.br Groupers as indicators of coral reef health in Brazil In 2002, the Brazilian Ministry of Environment assisted with the objective of establishing a National Monitoring Program for Brazilian coral reefs. The idea was to survey popular tourist destinations inside MPAs, namely Maracajaú reef in the northern Touros-Natal area, the Coral Coast reefs in the Pirangi-Maceió area, Fernando de Noronha (an archipelago on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge) and the Abrolhos reefs in southern Brazil. A total of x5meters transects were surveyed using the reef check methodology to determine the abundance of indicator reef fish species in 52 locations in these chosen areas. Of interest to our specialist group, groupers larger than 40 cm were absent or rare in most locations. Some of the grouper and wrasse species which occurred include Epinepheleus itajara, Mycteroperca bonaci, Cephalopholis fulva, Paranthias furcifer, Epinephelus adscencionis, Halichoeres brasiliensis, Halichoeres cyanocephalus, Halichoeres poeyi, and Thalassoma noronhanum. Although some of the areas are effectively protected from fishing, past mortality and intense fishing outside the boundaries of the reserves have probably prevented the stocks from recovering. This was a pilot survey, and a proposal will be submitted shortly for continued funding. Beatrice Ferreira 4

5 Wreckfish assessment too little but not too late Andy Cornish recently completed (June 2003) the RAMAS Red List assessment for the wreckfish Polyprion americanus, with data from Brazil supplied by Dr. Monica Peres of FEPAM (the State Environmental Agency) in Brazil. In 2000, Monica contacted our IUCN specialist group to start an assessment of this species. She was responding to a plea from local fishers, in the hope that the results from the assessment could be used as an argument to convince authorities to reduce fishing effort. The global assessment data were insufficient, so she asked for a southern Brazil wreckfish assessment, as there is some genetic evidence that this stock may be an isolated, endemic species of the genus Polyprion. Based on the assessment, the species was classified as critically endangered in Brazil: a global assessment of the species was also done, as required. The wreckfish were traditionally caught in southern Brazil by local handliners, but, from the mid-90's, fishing pressure on the stock increased significantly. The fleet increased to 35 boats, changed to horizontal longlines and expanded the fishing areas northwards to include the species' spawning grounds. From 1998 to 2001 there was intense exploitation by four Spanish-leased longliners that ultimately left the fishery for economic reasons. The local fishery finally collapsed in 2002, showing how fast a stock can be depleted, especially when the species is long-lived, slow-growing, has low natural mortality and forms spawning aggregations at specific sites and seasons. In addition, recruitment of southern Brazil wreckfish to the fishing grounds is gradual (8 to 33 years), which means that it takes at least 8 years before the signs of overfishing can be detected. Although wreckfish are not targeted anymore, some are still taken as a bycatch off southern Brazil. If this species is not protected, it will be at risk of extinction. Beatrice Ferreira Grouper management in Mexico The Centro de Investigacion y Estudios Avanzados del Instituto Politecnico Nacional (CINVESTAV-IPN) in Merida, Yucatan, Mexico, has been studying the biology of groupers from the continental slope of the Yucatan Peninsula (Campeche Bank) for the past 10 years. Despite the high commercial value of groupers and their over-exploited status in Yucatan (especially for red grouper Epinephelus morio), grouper fishery regulations in Mexican waters are less restrictive than in U.S. waters (Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council In January 2003, the Mexican regulations included a licence limitation and a minimum legal total length of 30 cm, while for the Cuban fleet, an annual catch quota of metric tons was applied. The 30cm TL minimum size limit was applied to prevent the marketing of fish considered too small and was only related to the growth over-fishing problem. Because grouper landings and catch-per-unit-effort have decreased over the ten last years (with constant fishing effort), the Mexican government proposed, for the first time, a closed season as a new management measure to protect the grouper resource. This fishing regulation has been official since February 13, 2003 (Federation Official diary of Mexico) and includes a seasonal closure for all grouper species from February 15 to March 15. This applies to all waters of the Exclusive Economic Zone from Campeche and Yucatan states (Gulf of Mexico) and Quintana Roo state (Caribbean Sea), as well as from Rio San Pedro, between Tabasco and Campeche states, to the Belize border. Additionally, there are restrictions in the use of long-line fishing gear during the seasonal closure in the above areas. The seasonal closure is based on our studies of the reproductive biology of the three more important grouper species from the Campeche Bank (red grouper, E. morio, black grouper, Mycteroperca bonaci and gag, M. microlepis). These studies have shown that these fishes all show peak spawning activity between January and March in the Southern Gulf of Mexico. Future studies will indicate if this fishing measure will be appropriate and adequate for the management of the southern Gulf of Mexico grouper resource. Thierry Brule tbrule@kin.mda.cinvestav.mx 5

6 SCRFA section The Society for the Conservation of Reef Fish Aggregations (SCRFA) continues, as a key part of its work, interviews of fishermen in the western Pacific to learn more about the current status and recent history of exploited spawning aggregations. Information is being collected on all reef fish species that aggregate to spawn but clearly more is known about groupers than any other family. In carrying out these interviews we are also learning much about the fisheries of these species, information that will be very useful for our IUCN species assessments. For example, it was very clear from interviews in the Philippines that a number spawning aggregations of Epinephelus fuscoguttatus, E. polyphekadion and Plectropomus areolatus have recently been discovered as interest in the live reef food fish trade spreads, and many aggregations have already been much reduced. The same three species are frequently found aggregating together in many areas of the western Pacific. It has also been possible to collect information on the humphead wrasse, Cheilinus undulatus, from fisheries in which there are no landings data for the species, with severe declines indicated in many areas. Interviews with fishermen are proving to be very useful for gathering such information where no other records exist. SCRFA has also produced a comprehensive Methods Manual (reference below) for studying spawning aggregations that is available on CD or as hardcopy or can be downloaded from the website. Miscellaneous This brindle bass Epinephelus lanceolatus weighed 154 kg and was caught by a recreational shore angler 200 km north of Durban (about 30 o S, 31 o E), South Africa - supposedly the largest teleost caught from the shore since 1914 in South Africa! A protected species here, it was photographed, tagged, weighed and released within 2 minutes by the competition anglers - it was observed to swim off strongly. No measurements were taken unfortunately. 6

7 Publications/websites of interest Dulvy, N.K., Sadovy, Y. and Reynolds, J.D Extinction vulnerability in marine populations. Fish and Fisheries: In press Hutchings, J.A. (2001) Conservation biology of marine fishes: perceptions and caveats regarding assignment of extinction risk. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Science 58, Sadovy, Y The threat of fishing to highly fecund fishes. Journal of Fish Biology 59, (Supplement A): Sadovy Y. and Cheung, W.L Near extinction of a highly fecund fish: trouble among the croakers. Fish and Fisheries: In press Hamada, K, K. Mushiake & A. Nakazono: Dispersal and growth of the seed of the Kelp Grouper, Epinephelus bruneus. Abstract of the annual meeting of JSFS, Tokyo, Colin, P. L., Sadovy, Y. J., and Domeier, M. L Manual for the study and conservation of reef fish spawning aggregations. Society for the Conservation of Reef Fish Aggregations Special Publication No. 1 (Version 1.0), pp iii pp. Machado, L. F., Andrade, A. B. & Hostim-Silva, M. & Barreiros, J. P Habitat use by the juvenile dusky grouper Epinephelus marginatus and its relative abundance in Santa Catarina, Brazil. Aqua 6(4), Reproductive biology of the dusky grouper (Epinephelus marginatus, Lowe, 1834) Perciformes: Serranidae, Epinephelinae) in Santa Catarina, Brazil. TECPAR vol.46(3)2003 (ainda não temos as páginas) Áthila Bertoncini Andrade; Leonardo Francisco Machado; Maurício HostimSilva and João Pedro Barreiros. garoupa1@cttmar.univali.br hostim@matrix.com.br 7