Abstract

The Mesoamerican reef (MAR) connects Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras. The MAR shares a rich cultural heritage and ecological resources amongst its people. Although crucial resources such as reef health and fisheries have declined steadily, the region depends on ecotourism and fisheries to thrive. In this region, multiple marine protected areas (MPAs) have been established as a conservation strategy, yet little is known about trends in recruitment of reef fishes into these MPAs. Monitoring recruitment is fundamental but difficult in remote areas, thus local capacity-building is the first step to assess reef fish recruitment. An innovative capacity and research effort was carried out in 10 MPAs during the new moon in September 2013, February 2014 and August 2014 to assess the arrival of juvenile fishes into MPAs. First, training was provided to enhance local expertise during capacity workshops in May 2010, and March 2012. Collection efforts utilized water column collectors deployed overnight for at least 5 days at each site, and were sampled in the morning. 947 fish were captured during three simultaneous collection efforts from 23 families, and at least 48 species have been identified. Active recruitment into MPAs was documented, as most fish were post-larvae to early juveniles with pelagic dispersal strategies. The most abundant families were jacks, wrasses, filefishes, and pufferfishes. Jacks were represent-ed by six species; the most abundant was the Atlantic bumper (Chloroscombrus chrysurus). Results of the first three connectivity exercises were successful with widespread participation and improved capacity among neighbor countries. As a result of our capacity building efforts, additional exercises have been incorporated by managers to increase activities related to connectivity research to support conservation and management of reef fishes in the Mesoamerican Region.

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