Larval Dispersal and Retention Among Sub-populations of Coral Reef Fishes: A Multi-Technique Approach

该奖项是根据2009年美国复苏和再投资法案（公法111-5）资助的。种群连通性，即地理上分离的群体通过扩散联系在一起的程度，是海洋种群动态的一个关键参数。连通率决定了新栖息地的殖民模式，种群对收获的弹性，以及禁止捕捞海洋保护区（NTMR）网络的设计。对海洋生物中的交换率进行量化是极其困难的，因为成年生物纳塔尔起源几乎总是未知的。缺乏这方面的知识主要是由于难以对有大量小型中上层后代的物种进行标记-再捕获研究，这些物种的初始死亡率很高。该项目将继续采用多技术方法，结合使用耳石的TRAnsgenerational Isotope Labeling（TRAIL）对鱼类胚胎进行大规模标记和基于高变微卫星DNA标记的亲子关系分析，以测量珊瑚礁鱼类的扩散距离。人口连接将估计两个物种（双锯鱼percula和Chaetodon vagabundus）在金贝湾，巴布亚新几内亚。珊瑚礁生物通常分布在珊瑚礁的马赛克上，有时被海洋分开。据推测，在小尺度下，珊瑚礁必须是开放的种群，相邻珊瑚礁之间的幼虫交换显着。在更大的尺度上，种群必须有效地封闭，晚期幼虫返回到与其父母相同的种群。这种转变的规模尚不清楚。最近的证据表明，具有生态意义的自我补充可能发生在个别珊瑚礁或岛屿的规模。如果准确的话，这些发现对海洋物种的管理策略具有重要影响，包括NTMR网络的设计，因为对散布距离的了解决定了可以完全保护种群的规模。它还确定保护区的适当间隔，使受保护种群能够补充邻近的捕鱼区。该项目将量化巴布亚新几内亚金贝湾珊瑚礁鱼类种群的连通性，并将空间尺度从研究单一地点（金贝岛）产卵的幼虫的命运扩大到研究5个指定的NTMR之间的连通性。该项目将加强来自美国、澳大利亚和法国的研究人员在耳石地球化学、珊瑚礁鱼类生态学和种群遗传学方面的国际合作。这项合作包括培训一名研究生。该项目的研究也将纳入PI教授的课程。这项研究与金贝湾正在进行的保护工作（由大自然保护协会领导）以及一项新的雄心勃勃的六国保护和管理珊瑚三角区内珊瑚礁的努力高度相关。珊瑚三角区倡议的一个主要重点将是基于生态系统的管理以及设计和实施一个国家监测报告网络。因此，对人口连通性的估计对于为管理工作奠定坚实的科学基础至关重要。

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).Population connectivity, the degree to which geographically-separated groups are linked by dispersal, is a critical parameter in the dynamics of marine populations. Connectivity rates determine colonization patterns of new habitats, the resiliency of populations to harvest, and the design of networks of No Take Marine Reserves (NTMRs). Quantifying exchange rates in marine organisms is extremely difficult because natal origins of adults are almost invariably unknown. This lack of knowledge is primarily due to the difficulty of conducting mark-recapture studies in species with large numbers of small pelagic offspring that suffer high initial mortality rates. This project will continue a multi-technique approach combining mass-marking of fish embryos using TRAnsgenerational Isotope Labeling (TRAIL) of otoliths and paternity analyses based on hypervariable microsatellite DNA markers to measure dispersal distances of coral reef fishes. Population connectivity will be estimated for two species (Amphiprion percula and Chaetodon vagabundus) in Kimbe Bay, Papua New Guinea. Coral reef organisms are usually distributed across a mosaic of reefs that are sometimes separated by the ocean. It has been presumed that at small scales, reefs must be open populations, with significant exchange of larvae among neighboring reefs. At larger scales, populations must effectively be closed, with late-stage larvae returning to the same population as their parents. The scale over which this transition takes place is unknown. Recent evidence suggests that ecologically significant self-recruitment may occur at scales of individual reefs or islands. If accurate, these findings have important implications for management strategies for marine species, including the design of networks of NTMRs, because knowledge of dispersal distances determines the scale over which populations can be completely protected. It also determines the appropriate spacing of reserves to allow protected populations to replenish adjacent fished areas. This project will quantify population connectivity of coral reef fishes in Kimbe Bay, Papua New Guinea and broaden the spatial scale from examining the fate of larvae spawned at a single location (Kimbe Island) to examining connectivity among 5 designated NTMRs.The project will strengthen international collaborations among researchers from the US, Australia and France with expertise in otolith geochemistry, reef fish ecology, and population genetics. This collaboration includes the training of a graduate student. Research from the project will also be incorporated into courses taught by the PI. The research is highly relevant to ongoing conservation efforts in Kimbe Bay (led by The Nature Conservancy) and a new and ambitious six-nation effort to protect and manage coral reefs within the Coral Triangle. A major focus of the Coral Triangle Initiative will be ecosystem-based management and the design and implementation of a network of NTMRs. Estimates of population connectivity will, therefore, be vital to establish a strong scientific basis for management efforts.