Design Of Marine Protected Areas Research Articles

Size, age, and habitat determine effectiveness of Palau's Marine Protected Areas.

Palau has a rich heritage of conservation that has evolved from the traditional moratoria on fishing, or “bul”, to more western Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), while still retaining elements of customary management and tenure. In 2003, the Palau Protected Areas Network (PAN) was created to conserve Palau’s unique biodiversity and culture, and is the country’s mechanism for achieving the goals of the Micronesia Challenge (MC), an initiative to conserve ≥30% of near-shore marine resources within the region by 2020. The PAN comprises a network of numerous MPAs within Palau that vary in age, size, level of management, and habitat, which provide an excellent opportunity to test hypotheses concerning MPA design and function using multiple discreet sampling units. Our sampling design provided a robust space for time comparison to evaluate the relative influence of potential drivers of MPA efficacy. Our results showed that no-take MPAs had, on average, nearly twice the biomass of resource fishes (i.e. those important commercially, culturally, or for subsistence) compared to nearby unprotected areas. Biomass of non-resource fishes showed no differences between no-take areas and areas open to fishing. The most striking difference between no-take MPAs and unprotected areas was the more than 5-fold greater biomass of piscivorous fishes in the MPAs compared to fished areas. The most important determinates of no-take MPA success in conserving resource fish biomass were MPA size and years of protection. Habitat and distance from shore had little effect on resource fish biomass. The extensive network of MPAs in Palau likely provides important conservation and tourism benefits to the Republic, and may also provide fisheries benefits by protecting spawning aggregation sites, and potentially through adult spillover.

Incorporating larval dispersal into MPA design for both conservation and fisheries.

Larval dispersal by ocean currents is a critical component of systematic marine protected area (MPA) design. However, there is a lack of quantitative methods to incorporate larval dispersal in support of increasingly diverse management objectives, including local population persistence under multiple types of threats (primarily focused on larval retention within and dispersal between protected locations) and benefits to unprotected populations and fisheries (primarily focused on larval export from protected locations to fishing grounds). Here, we present a flexible MPA design approach that can reconcile multiple such potentially conflicting management objectives by balancing various associated treatments of larval dispersal information. We demonstrate our approach based on alternative dispersal patterns, combinations of threats to populations, management objectives, and two different optimization strategies (site vs. network-based). Our outcomes highlight a consistently high effectiveness in selecting priority locations that are self-replenishing, inter-connected, and/or important larval sources. We find that the opportunity to balance these three dispersal attributes flexibly can help not only to prevent meta-population collapse, but also to ensure effective fisheries recovery, with average increases in the number of recruits at fishing grounds at least two times higher than achieved by standard habitat-based or ad-hoc MPA designs. Future applications of our MPA design approach should therefore be encouraged, specifically where management tools other than MPAs are not feasible.

Contrasting patterns of population structure and gene flow facilitate exploration of connectivity in two widely distributed temperate octocorals

Connectivity is an important component of metapopulation dynamics in marine systems and can influence population persistence, migration rates and conservation decisions associated with Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). In this study, we compared the genetic diversity, gene flow and population structure of two octocoral species, Eunicella verrucosa and Alcyonium digitatum, in the northeast Atlantic (ranging from the northwest of Ireland and the southern North Sea, to southern Portugal), using two panels of 13 and 8 microsatellite loci, respectively. Our results identified regional genetic structure in E. verrucosa partitioned between populations from southern Portugal, northwest Ireland and Britain/France; subsequent hierarchical analysis of population structure also indicated reduced gene flow between southwest Britain and northwest France. However, over a similar geographical area, A. digitatum showed little evidence of population structure, suggesting high gene flow and/or a large effective population size; indeed, the only significant genetic differentiation detected in A. digitatum occurred between North Sea samples and those from the English Channel/northeast Atlantic. In both species the vast majority of gene flow originated from sample sites within regions, with populations in southwest Britain being the predominant source of contemporary exogenous genetic variants for the populations studied. Overall, historical patterns of gene flow appeared more complex, though again southwest Britain appeared to be an important source of genetic variation for both species. Our findings have major conservation implications, particularly for E. verrucosa, a protected species in UK waters and listed by the IUCN as ‘Vulnerable’, and for the designation and management of European MPAs.

The California Seafloor and Coastal Mapping Program – Providing science and geospatial data for California's State Waters

The California Seafloor and Coastal Mapping Program (CSCMP) is a collaborative effort to develop comprehensive bathymetric, geologic, and habitat maps and data for California's State Waters. CSCMP began in 2007 when the California Ocean Protection Council (OPC) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) allocated funding for high-resolution bathymetric mapping, largely to support the California Marine Life Protection Act and to update nautical charts. Collaboration and support from the U.S. Geological Survey and other partners has led to development and dissemination of one of the world's largest seafloor-mapping datasets. CSCMP provides essential science and data for ocean and coastal management, stimulates and enables research, and raises public education and awareness of coastal and ocean issues. Specific applications include:•Delineation and designation of marine protected areas•Characterization and modeling of benthic habitats and ecosystems•Updating nautical charts•Earthquake hazard assessments•Tsunami hazard assessments•Planning offshore infrastructure•Providing baselines for monitoring change•Input to models of sediment transport, coastal erosion, and coastal flooding•Regional sediment management•Understanding coastal aquifers•Providing geospatial data for emergency response

Balancing sustainability in two pioneering marine national parks in Scandinavia

Even though marine protected areas (MPAs) have become central instruments in the endeavour towards sustainable development, our knowledge on how different institutional designs influence outcomes is limited. Using a comparative case study design, this paper explores the interplay between institutional arrangements and management outcomes in two adjacent yet institutionally slightly differing MPAs, encompassing a shared marine trench and a partially inhabited archipelago landscape – namely the Koster Sea National Park in Sweden and the Outer Hvaler National Park in Norway. How can differences in the institutional designs governing the two parks, be linked to differences in sustainability outcomes? What lessons can be learnt for the design of MPAs? The study shows that institutional design influences management outcomes in some respects but not in others. Differences in overall management systems had no noticeable effects on sustainability outcomes and how they were perceived, while the differing objectives of the parks and how they are made operational seem to have affected the outcomes. But they have also influenced actors' expectations and their assessment of outcomes. According to this study, conservation arrangements can be broadened beyond mere nature protection. However, the study also underlines the challenges of locally adapted and participatory institutional designs and emphasises the importance of taking users’ varying expectations related to social and economic values into account throughout the whole process. The establishment of national parks is no guarantee for broader sustainable development per se; this also requires resources and proper embedding and integration with relevant sectors and tiers in the overall management system.

Size matters: Predator outbreaks threaten foundation species in small Marine Protected Areas.

The unanticipated impacts of consumers in fragmented habitats are frequently a challenge for ecosystem management. On Indo-Pacific coral reefs, crown-of-thorns sea stars (Acanthaster spp.) are coral predators whose outbreaks cause precipitous coral decline. Across large spatial scales, Acanthaster densities are lower in large no-take Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and reefs subject to limited human exploitation. However, using a combination of observational and manipulative experiments, we found that Acanthaster densities within a network of small, no-take MPAs on reef flats in Fiji were ~2–3.4 times greater inside MPAs than in adjacent fished areas and ~2–2.5 times greater than the upper threshold density indicative of an outbreak. This appeared to result from selective Acanthaster migration to the coral-rich MPAs from fished areas that are coral-poor and dominated by macroalgae. Small MPAs can dramatically increase the cover of foundation species like corals, but may selectively attract coral predators like Acanthaster due to greater food densities within MPAs or because the MPAs are too small to support Acanthaster enemies. As coral cover increases, their chemical and visual cues may concentrate Acanthaster to outbreak densities that cause coral demise, compromising the value of small MPAs. An understanding of predator dynamics as a function of habitat type, size, and fragmentation needs to be incorporated into MPA design and management.

Constraints of terrestrial protected area solutions in protecting marine biodiversity

ABSTRACT Traditionally the concepts of terrestrial protected areas have been used in designating marine protected areas. We discuss the differences between marine and terrestrial protected areas and highlight the need to consider the movement of species through marine protected boundaries. The source of most productivity differs; in terrestrial systems it is all attached whereas in the marine environment much occurs in the water column and cannot be restrained by artificial boundaries. This has major implications for the management of marine protected areas.

How can science inform the design and management of marine protected areas?

ABSTRACT There is incongruity between much of the research that is ostensibly directed at improving marine conservation outcomes, and the effort that is actually needed to generate better outcomes. I argue that this is partly due to inadequate critique of basic assumptions by marine researchers. One assumption that is frequently made (explicitly or implicitly) is that marine reserves need to contain representatives of all species if they are to be effective. This assumption is not supported by evidence: many (perhaps most) species of marine organisms do not need the protection that marine reserves confer, because they are not threatened by processes that can be effectively managed by marine reserves. Better conservation investments are likely to be made if researchers critically evaluate basic assumptions, and design their research to address real information needs. Improved recommendations are likely to be achieved by research directed at understanding which species need protection most, and on how marin...

Lagrangian analysis of multi-satellite data in support of open ocean Marine Protected Area design

Compared to ecosystem conservation in territorial seas, protecting the open ocean has peculiar geopolitical, economic and scientific challenges. One of the major obstacle is defining the boundary of an open ocean Marine Protected Area (MPA). In contrast to coastal ecosystems, which are mostly constrained by topographic structures fixed in time, the life of marine organisms in the open ocean is entrained by fluid dynamical structures like eddies and fronts, whose lifetime occurs on ecologically-relevant timescales. The position of these highly dynamical structures can vary interannually by hundreds of km, and so too will regions identified as ecologically relevant such as the foraging areas of marine predators. Thus, the expected foraging locations suggested from tracking data cannot be directly extrapolated beyond the year in which the data were collected. Here we explore the potential of Lagrangian methods applied to multisatellite data as a support tool for a MPA proposal by focusing on the Crozet archipelago oceanic area (Indian Sector of the Southern Ocean). By combining remote sensing with biologging information from a key marine top predator (Eudyptes chrysolophus, or Macaroni penguin) of the Southern Ocean foodweb, we identify a highly dynamic branch of the Subantarctic front as a foraging hotspot. By tracking this feature in historical satellite data (1993–2012) we are able to extrapolate the position of this foraging ground beyond the years in which tracking data are available and study its spatial variability.

Changes in trophic ecology of fish assemblages after no take Marine Protected Area designation in the southwestern coast of Portugal

Changes in fish assemblage structure caused by human activities, such as fishing, can alter trophic relations in fish assemblages. In this context, Marine Protected Areas (MPA) are efficient tools for habitat recovery and ideal environments for evaluating changes on the trophic structure resulting from human activities. The present work targeted fish assemblages from two no-take MPAs from the northern half of South Alentejo and Costa Vicentina Marine Park, established in 2011. Previous works reported positive effects on local fish assemblages after no-take MPA designation, and it is therefore important to further study its impact on local fish assemblages, especially concerning trophic interactions. Local fish assemblages were sampled (summer 2011, winter 2012, summer 2013 and winter 2013) using trammel nets. Diets were characterized and digestive tract contents of the 10 most abundant fish species were compared between the no take MPAs (treatment) and adjacent areas (controls), and changes evaluated as a function of time since protection. Results revealed significant differences between the diets of fish from protected and non protected areas, with crabs being the preferential prey in both protected and control areas but being more ingested outside the no-take areas. However, these differences were evident since the beginning of the study. Fish assemblages from the northern area presented significantly larger niche breadth and significantly increasing with time. This way, the main effects of no-take MPA implementation were directly visible on the niche breadth but did not directly impact the diet composition of the sampled fish assemblages, contributing however to reinforce the already naturally existent differences. This work provides important information regarding the effect of changes in the fish assemblage caused by MPA designation on the trophic ecology of fish.

Bio-physical connectivity patterns of benthic marine species used in the designation of Scottish nature conservation marine protected areas

Abstract Connectivity is a key consideration in the development of networks of marine protected areas (MPAs). However, little is known about the early life history of many of the epi-benthic animals that these spatial measures try to conserve. Here, a pragmatic approach to consider connectivity in such organisms is adopted, as part of the Scottish nature conservation MPA designation process. The primary tool for the study was a basic bio-physical model, forced by a circulation climatology. In the general absence of comprehensive ecological information, the model accounted for the main biological characteristics of the benthic organisms under consideration of relevance to connectivity, namely, presence, spawning season and pelagic larval duration (PLD). The results showed that some degree of connectivity between MPAs is possible even for species with short PLD although those organisms are more likely to be vulnerable to local pressures, particularly in the case of less widely distributed species and those inhabiting less dispersive inshore locations. For MPAs further offshore and species with longer PLD, our simulations suggested large-scale advection patterns crossing large-scale environmental management boundaries. Although the study was an appropriate contribution to the MPA designation process, further refinements encompassing better basic ecological information, enhanced oceanographic resolution, more realistic representation of biological processes (e.g. spawning, larval behaviour) in the model, species presence within and outside MPAs and substrate suitability maps would provide future useful confidence boundaries around the general patterns derived from our study.

Ecosystem Oceanography of Seabird Hotspots: Environmental Determinants and Relationship with Antarctic Krill Within an Important Fishing Ground

The discipline of ecosystem oceanography provides a framework for assessing the role of mesoscale physical processes on the formation and occurrence of biological hotspots. We used shipboard surveys over nine years to investigate environmental determinants of seabird hotspots near the Antarctic Peninsula, a region experiencing rapid climate change and an expanding krill fishery. We hypothesize that seabird hotspots are structured by mesoscale ocean conditions that reflect differences in prey distribution within oceanic and coastal waters. We used generalized additive models to quantify functional relationships of seabird hotspots with krill biomass, and a suite of remotely sensed environmental variables, such as eddy kinetic energy. The spatial organization, changes in intensity, and distribution shifts of seabird hotspots indicate different environmental drivers within coastal and oceanic domains and reflect the seasonal variability of the ecosystem. Our results indicate at least eight mesoscale hotspot zones that represent ecologically important areas where significant krill and predator biomass may be concentrated. Our ecosystem assessment of seabird hotspots identified critical foraging habitat and provided reference points to benefit research on estimating their trophic impacts on Antarctic ecosystems and potential effects from the krill fishery. Our approach is generally applicable to other pelagic ecosystems that are structured by hydrographic fronts and eddies, and containing schooling forage species shared by multiple wide-ranging predators. Furthermore, identification of biological hotspots is useful for the designation of marine protected areas most critical to potentially endangered wildlife and fisheries resources.

Changes in fish assemblage structure after implementation of Marine Protected Areas in the south western coast of Portugal

Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are increasingly being recommended as management tools for biodiversity conservation and fisheries. With the purpose of protecting the region's biodiversity and prevent the over exploitation of marine resources, in February 2011 the no-take MPAs of Ilha do Pessegueiro and Cabo Sardão were implemented within the “Parque Natural do Sudoeste Alentejano e Costa Vicentina “(PNSACV) Marine Park, south western coast of Portugal. As such, commercial and recreational fishing became prohibited in these areas. In order to evaluate the effects of these no-take MPAs, the structure of their fish assemblages and of adjacent control areas without fishing restrictions were studied between 2011 (immediately after implementation) and 2013 (two years after implementation). A total of 4 sampling campaigns were conducted (summer 2011, winter 2012, summer 2013 and winter 2013) using trammel nets and bottom trawl. Ichthyofaunal assemblages from the no-take MPAs (treatment) were compared with adjacent areas (controls) and changes evaluated as a function of time since protection. Results revealed significant increase in fish abundance after the implementation of the no-take MPAs. Furthermore, significant differences in the structure of fish assemblages (abundance and fish size) between protected and neighbouring areas were rapidly observed upon the implementation of the no-take MPAs. In addition, specimens of larger size occurred more frequently within Ilha do Pessegueiro no-take MPA in the last year of the study. Overall, despite the young age of these no-take MPAs, changes on the structure of their fish assemblages were already evident after only two years of protection, indicating that management measures such as MPA designation may play an important role to promote fisheries sustainable exploitation as well as to protect species with conservation interest.

Meeting Aichi Target 11: Equity considerations in Marine Protected Areas design

There is an increasing recognition that marine and coastal ecosystems are under severe threat. The implementation of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) has become a cornerstone in addressing these impacts. The formulation of the Aichi Target (AT) 11 has acknowledged the benefits of MPAs as a vital approach to achieve marine conservation targets. In the AT 11, reference to the term “equitably managed” has demonstrated the importance of equity in the planning and management of MPAs and in this paper, a description of how equity should be considered from the inception stage is detailed. Two case studies, one in Japan and the other in the Solomon Islands, were chosen because they include equity considerations from the inception and were successful in reaching their conservation targets. Through these two case studies, it is demonstrated that understanding the objectives and expectations of all stakeholders can help achieve the qualitative goals of the AT 11. This is particularly true for local and indigenous communities in Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and coastal communities in developing countries. Finally, a set of recommendations has been provided to address possible limitations that could arise during the MPA design exercise. Participatory area management and spatial and temporal zoning can help by ensuring that benefits and costs are distributed equitably between stakeholders.

‘Dangerous Targets’ revisited: Old dangers in new contexts plague marine protected areas

Abstract The use of targets to provide measurable objectives and benchmarks for management, conservation, and restoration of ecosystems is commonplace. In the marine and coastal realms, targets have been successful in setting sustainable limits to fisheries harvests, thresholds for pollutants, and recommended amounts of representative habitat included in marine protected area (MPA) networks. Quantifiable targets can dissuade governments from making dubious claims about investments in ocean protection that sound impressive but cannot be verified. Examples are presented where protection targets have been used successfully for marine management, and instances where measurable and meaningful benchmarks serve to allow tracking of true progress. However, the setting of targets can also be a double‐edged sword. In some cases, targets have proven useful, but in many instances, interventions made to fulfil targets not only give a false illusion of progress or even success, they present opportunity costs that impede further conservation. Some of these issues were raised in the 2003 article ‘Dangerous Targets?: Unresolved issues and ideological clashes around marine protected areas’ that appeared in Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems. Since its publication, the article's warnings about how targets can sometimes be dangerous and counter‐productive have led to intense debate among scientists and policy‐makers alike, and the paper has been cited in more than 500 publications. Yet today, more than a dozen years after the first ‘Dangerous Targets' publication, new targets are driving more MPA designations and conservation strategies than ever before, and the ‘dangerous’ aspects of target setting have been largely ignored. This paper discusses old ‘dangers' in the context of new developments in marine conservation, including the lingering problem of having simplistic metrics drive marine policies, and the unintended result that can often occur when outputs (percentage of area under MPA designation) do not align with true outcomes of effective management and conservation. Newly emerging ‘dangers’ in letting areal targets (percentage of area under MPA designation) drive MPA designations are also discussed, including how the rush to fulfil obligations to protect a certain proportion of area is taking place in planning, separate from broader level, and potentially more holistic, marine spatial planning (MSP). The paper suggests five recommendations that would allow policy‐makers to use targets more effectively, including: (1) increase transparency in planning, especially around specific goals and objectives of MPA establishment; (2) use time‐based areal targets when representativity is a goal of the protected area strategy; (3) use MPAs when spatial protections are the best solution to the management challenge; (4) design MPAs with intrinsic performance goals, and use performance‐based metrics in subsequent evaluation of MPAs; and (5) embed MPA planning into broader policy frameworks, including MSP. These five recommendations are oriented toward multilateral institutions, governments, and non‐governmental organizations, suggesting concrete ways to utilize target‐setting to their best advantage, in order to fight the downward spiral of degradation affecting marine and coastal environments worldwide. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Towards a flexible Decision Support Tool for MSY-based Marine Protected Area design for skates and rays

It is recommended that demersal elasmobranchs be managed using spatial proxies for Maximum Sustainable Yield. Here we combine escapement biomass—the percentage of the stock which must be retained each year to conserve it—with maps of predicted Catch Per Unit Effort (CPUE) of four ray species [cuckoo (Leucoraja naevus), thornback (Raja clavata), blonde (Raja brachyura), and spotted (Raja montagui)], created using Boosted Regression Tree modelling. We then use a Decision Support Tool to generate location and size options for Marine Protected Areas to protect these stocks, based on the priorities of the various stakeholders, notably the minimisation of fishing effort displacement. Variations of conservation/fishing priorities are simulated, as well as differential priorities for individual species, with a focus on protecting nursery grounds and spawning areas. Prioritizing high CPUE cells results in a smaller closed area that displaces the most fishing effort, whereas prioritizing low fishing effort results in a larger closed area that displaces the least fishing effort. The final result is a complete software package that produces maps of predicted species CPUE from limited survey data, and allows disparate stakeholders and policymakers to discuss management options within a mapping interface.

Close genetic connectivity of soft coral Sarcophyton trocheliophorum in Indonesia and its implication for marine protected area

The genetic connectivity of soft coral is influenced by current and distance between islands. The complexity of islands and geographical region in Indonesia might influence the distribution of soft corals. The information of genetic connectivity can be used to design marine protected areas and to avoid destruction and possible extinction. The objective of the present study was to analyze genetic connectivity of one species of soft coral, Sarcophyton trocheliophorum, in three populations spanning Java, Nusa Tenggara, and Sulawesi’s waters, and to describe its implication for marine protected area. The mitochondrial protein-coding gene (750 bp of ND2) was used to analyze genetic population structure and genetic connectivity. Genetic connectivity was found in all populations with Fst value of 0.227 to 0.558, indicating populations had the close genetic relationship. The local and Indonesian currents were expected to distribute the larva to islands as a stepping stone, they moved slowly to spread them self far away. Tanakeke island (Sulawesi population) might be a center connectivity of S. trocheliophorum populations. This island connected with islands in west and east Indonesia, therefore that area need to protect

Integrating Climate Change Resilience Features into the Incremental Refinement of an Existing Marine Park.

Marine protected area (MPA) designs are likely to require iterative refinement as new knowledge is gained. In particular, there is an increasing need to consider the effects of climate change, especially the ability of ecosystems to resist and/or recover from climate-related disturbances, within the MPA planning process. However, there has been limited research addressing the incorporation of climate change resilience into MPA design. This study used Marxan conservation planning software with fine-scale shallow water (<20 m) bathymetry and habitat maps, models of major benthic communities for deeper water, and comprehensive human use information from Ningaloo Marine Park in Western Australia to identify climate change resilience features to integrate into the incremental refinement of the marine park. The study assessed the representation of benthic habitats within the current marine park zones, identified priority areas of high resilience for inclusion within no-take zones and examined if any iterative refinements to the current no-take zones are necessary. Of the 65 habitat classes, 16 did not meet representation targets within the current no-take zones, most of which were in deeper offshore waters. These deeper areas also demonstrated the highest resilience values and, as such, Marxan outputs suggested minor increases to the current no-take zones in the deeper offshore areas. This work demonstrates that inclusion of fine-scale climate change resilience features within the design process for MPAs is feasible, and can be applied to future marine spatial planning practices globally.

Expanding marine protected areas to include degraded coral reefs.

Marine protected areas (MPAs) are a commonly applied solution to coral reef degradation, yet coral reefs continue to decline worldwide. We argue that expanding the range of MPAs to include degraded reefs (DR-MPA) could help reverse this trend. This approach requires new ecological criteria for MPA design, siting, and management. Rather than focusing solely on preserving healthy reefs, our approach focuses on the potential for biodiversity recovery and renewal of ecosystem services. The new criteria would help identify sites with the highest potential for recovery and the greatest resistance to future threats (e.g., increased temperature and acidification) and sites that contribute to MPA connectivity. The DR-MPA approach is a compliment rather than a substitute for traditional MPA design approaches. We believe that the DR-MPA approach can enhance the natural, or restoration-assisted, recovery of DRs and their ecosystem services; increase total reef area available for protection; promote more resilient and better-connected MPA networks; and improve conditions for human communities dependent on MPA ecosystem services.

Acoustic telemetry and network analysis reveal the space use of multiple reef predators and enhance marine protected area design.

Marine protected areas (MPAs) are commonly employed to protect ecosystems from threats like overfishing. Ideally, MPA design should incorporate movement data from multiple target species to ensure sufficient habitat is protected. We used long-term acoustic telemetry and network analysis to determine the fine-scale space use of five shark and one turtle species at a remote atoll in the Seychelles, Indian Ocean, and evaluate the efficacy of a proposed MPA. Results revealed strong, species-specific habitat use in both sharks and turtles, with corresponding variation in MPA use. Defining the MPA's boundary from the edge of the reef flat at low tide instead of the beach at high tide (the current best in Seychelles) significantly increased the MPA's coverage of predator movements by an average of 34%. Informed by these results, the larger MPA was adopted by the Seychelles government, demonstrating how telemetry data can improve shark spatial conservation by affecting policy directly.