Abstract
The University of Newcastle and NSW Department of Primary Industries provided funding with research conducted under NSW DPI Animal Care and Ethics Committee permit 10/09
Highlights
Marine protected areas (MPAs) have been established as spatially managed regions to provide balance in our use of marine estates while conserving marine biodiversity (Edgar et al 2007, Lester et al 2009, Miller & Russ 2014)
No-take areas (NTAs) are recognised as one tool that can often contribute to minimising impacts on target fishery species and improve essential habitats that species rely on (Gaines et al 2010, Sciberras et al 2015)
A key novelty was the spatial coupling of remote video with local habitat conditions assessments, which allowed us to compare fine-scale variation in benthic habitat availability with reef fish community structure across different management zones and sites
Summary
Marine protected areas (MPAs) have been established as spatially managed regions to provide balance in our use of marine estates while conserving marine biodiversity (Edgar et al 2007, Lester et al 2009, Miller & Russ 2014). Using deployments of minibaited remote underwater video (mini-BRUV) systems in concert with fine-scale assessment of reef habitat condition in shallow waters (6−9 m), this study aimed to determine the spatial community structure of reef-associated fishes with respect to management zones (NTAs and nearby PPAs) and habitat condition within the Port Stephens-Great Lakes Marine Park in NSW. A key novelty was the spatial coupling of remote video with local habitat conditions assessments, which allowed us to compare fine-scale variation in benthic habitat availability with reef fish community structure across different management zones and sites
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