Monitoring Coral Health and Resilience in Honduras The Explorer s Club Youth Activity Fund Recipient

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1 Monitoring Coral Health and Resilience in Honduras The Explorer s Club Youth Activity Fund Recipient Chloe Ready Dalhousie University Halifax NS, Canada

2 Introduction In the summer of 2011, The Explorer s Club provided me with partial funding ($1000) to take part in a research trip to the Bay Islands of Honduras. I was looking at coral health and resilience over time in Honduras; specifically how individual coral heads have changed since In conjunction with the nongovernmental organization Operation Wallacea, I was provided with the opportunity of a lifetime. Operation Wallacea is a network of academics from all areas of the world and currently has offices in Canada, USA, United Kingdom, South Africa and Australia. Operation Wallacea provides high school and university level students with opportunities to participate in research trips in 11 different countries all over the world. The program is enabled to function Figure 1. Montastrea cavernosa colony through partnerships with academics and other organizations within each country, along with tuition fees paid by individual volunteers. I learned about this organization in my second year of university, when I travelled to Cuba in August of 2010 as a research assistant. During this trip, I received my open water scuba certification and was exposed to many aspects of marine-based fieldwork such as sea turtle projects and coral reef surveying. My enjoyable experience with Operation Wallacea convinced me to focus my Honours thesis on one of their various projects. I approached Dr. Alan Pinder, my supervisor for this project, in September of 2010 and inquired about various Figure 2. Montastrea cavernosa colonies opportunities that were available. He informed me of a project that had begun in 2009 and involved monitoring the status and health of coral reefs over time. The summer of 2011 represented a two-year interval since surveying had first been

3 conducted. I joined the project, and with the help of the Explorer s Club Youth Activity Fund, my tuition fees were partly covered. The Bay Islands, and my study sites, are part of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef system. They have been subjected to immense pressure in the past, particularly from Hurricane Mitch in This hurricane caused physical damage to the surrounding area and reefs as well as excessive sedimentation from the coast. The Caribbean also experienced a disease induced mass mortality of the sea urchin Diadema antillarum in 1983 and the population numbers have not recovered since. These factors are some of many that may be influencing the overall state of the reefs in my study. Research Questions My project aims to examine the temporal changes between two study sites in the Bay Islands of Honduras. Specifically, I am looking at how individual coral heads have changed since 2009 in the absence of major disturbance events such as hurricanes or disease induced mass mortalities. The questions I have chosen to ask are as follows: how have the corals changed, and are they showing any signs of recovery and resilience? Does it look as though the corals are declining in health or are they showing positive trends (increases in growth, colony size, etc.)? Are there differences between a marine protected area and a non marine protected area site? Is the coral health significantly different in one area? Lastly, can we make future trajectories to the overall state of the reef? If we are seeing clear trends in reef decline or recovery then it may be possible to infer future projections and apply them on a larger scale. Study Sites My project took place from late June to early August of I flew into San Pedro Sula and from there, travelled to the coast of Honduras where we boarded a ferry to the island of Utila. Utila is located about 30 km from the coast and is known as a backpacker s paradise/tourism hub, mainly for the diving industry. When we arrived I noted the majority of houses and buildings were right on the water. The bulk of the island s income comes from the many dive shops where tourists can be taken out each day and have the opportunity to gain PADI certifications. We spent 3 weeks on the island and stayed at the Coral View Beach Resort on the far west side. The island of Utila provided a very laidback, enjoyable environment with some of the luxuries you would expect from home. There were many tourist shops and restaurants as well as wireless internet access. However, this island is currently not a marine protected area,

4 with fishing and other activities still taking place in the area. There is also significant pollution in the form of runoff from the town center. There were projects being undertaken during my time in Utila looking at the anthropogenic impacts on seagrass beds. For my project we had 9 different study sites, with each site containing one coral head. These sites were mainly located on the south side of the island; however, several sites were also located on the furthest eastern and western tips. Cayos Cochinos represented the second study site for this project. It is also part of the Bay Islands, but unlike Utila, has marine protected area status. Cayos Cochinos is located about half the distance to shore as Utila, and is in relatively close proximity to the Garifuna village on the coast. After the 3 weeks spent in Utila, we travelled to the village where we were paired (in groups of 2) with a family and a house mother. We were given a warm welcome upon our arrival and the children showed us around the village. I was truly humbled by the experience and it was amazing to be exposed to such a different culture. We were served a traditional Garifuna meal for supper and then given a demonstration of their various tribal dances. The next morning we were taken in fishing boats to Cayos Cochinos. This island was significantly different than Utila; there are no permanent residents, except for the park rangers and workers. The tourism is very limited and highly regulated through and around the island with constant monitoring by armed guards from the Honduran Navy. The area of Cayos Cochinos is mainly for scientific research, and it is equipped with wet and dry labs, as well as dive equipment and compression tanks. We spent 3 weeks on the island and had 5 study sites. There were 4 sites that had two coral heads and one study site with just 1. There were 18 coral heads in total between Utila and Cayos Cochinos Figure 3. Identical coral head shot taken in 2009 and 2011.

5 Data Collection and Analysis Coral heads that were first identified in 2009 were returned to during our time spent in Honduras. My supervisor recorded GPS coordinates and buoy numbers at the start of the project in 2009 so that they would be able to be located upon return. SCUBA dives were performed twice a day for 6 days a week. We often spent around two dives at each of the 18 heads. Data collection involved taking digital photographs of each individual coral colony on the head. Each head had anywhere between individual colonies. The underwater housing was equipped with a 10 cm scale bar for image analysis at a later time. Urchin surveys were also performed, with a 10-meter diameter being established underwater with a measuring tape. I recorded all urchins that were visible for 15 minutes, moving in a circle around the diameter. ImageJ software is currently being used to analyze the photos. Each individual photo is uploaded into the program and calibrated to the scale bar. I am then able to trace around the photo to determine surface area and perimeter. I also note any coverage of sponges, algae or other species of coral. Diseases and anything else of importance is also noted. Upon obtaining all measurements of the individual corals, they will be matched up with their 2009 Figure 4. The camera, and myself ready for picture taking counterparts to determine how they have changed over time. Since I am currently in the picture analysis phase I have no data to represent in this report. Conclusions and Future Directions I plan to continue my data analysis into the winter semester of my final year at university. I am presenting my research at the annual Cameron Conference at Dalhousie University in February as part of my Honours class requirements and have tentative plans to participate in the Northeast Undergraduate Research and Development Symposium in March at the University of New England. I would like to thank the Explorer s Club for their generous donation and for the opportunity to participate in such an interesting research project. This expedition has fueled my plans for a career in marine conservation management and I really appreciate the help given to my generation s future explorers.