Abstract
Connectivity is frequently cited as a vital component of Marine Protected Area (MPA) networks and was formally identified as one of five key principles for marine network design in European waters. Yet, without the ability to demonstrate connectivity, it is impossible to be certain that sites designated within a MPA network do in fact constitute a network, when they may –irrespective of the diversity and rarity of the taxa within them– be in reality a set of unlinked habitats and associated species assemblages. However, the process of assessing connectivity between MPAs, and which taxa to include in assessments of connectivity, is often difficult and can be dependent on a variety of factors that can be outside the control of managers, stakeholders and policymakers. Among the many methods that have been used to assess connectivity, genetic markers are often used to infer connectivity indirectly by estimating the degree of genetic differentiation between populations of a species or by inferring the origin(s) of migrants using assignment methods. While modern molecular methods can be extremely robust and are now routinely used to address conservation issues, genetic data are, to the authors’ knowledge, rarely used to inform designation of MPA networks. In this paper, several biological and methodological factors are highlighted, consideration of which may help to inform the selection of species for assessments of connectivity between MPAs in a network, and this paper suggests ways in which genetic data may be interpreted to inform MPA design and policy.
Highlights
Connectivity is identified as a key component in the design of European Marine Protected Area (MPA) networks [1]
Using published data from a previous study (Holland et al [32]) and the MPA network in southwest Britain as an example, this paper discusses how genetic data from a typical population genetic/genomic study may be interpreted to inform managers about connectivity in a MPA network, and which areas to consider prioritising to maximise the protection of biodiversity
The selection of appropriate taxa to use as surrogates for assessments of genetic connectivity between MPAs has seldom been discussed in the literature
Summary
Connectivity is identified as a key component in the design of European Marine Protected Area (MPA) networks [1]. The study of intra-species connectivity enables the quantification of effective larval dispersal and migration between populations, while allowing the degree of self-recruitment within populations to be estimated [6]. This is important for optimising the location and size of MPAs to create a well-connected network (instead of individual unrelated MPAs) [7,8], and for evaluating the impacts of resource exploitation on the population dynamics of commercial marine species [9]. - During data analysis, the power of the markers and sample sizes can be tested using various software. For a variety of reasons (Table 1), the study of species that come close to satisfying the criteria of a ‘holy grail’ species may not be feasible and, compromises are needed to facilitate the collection of data that are informative about connectivity in a given system
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