"Without these analyses we couldn't even examine the different possibilities for conservation," says Read.
Protecting the Open Ocean
Marine reserves are increasingly seen as a potent tool for conservation in coastal habitats that are fixed in time and space. While there are some fixed habitats offshore, such as seamounts and deep sea vents, many open ocean habitats are defined by dynamic properties such as currents or temperature that create blooms and bursts of food sources. Because of the interactions of different currents and water masses, certain locations have far more biological activity than others. Just like on land, there are migration corridors, biological hotspots and breeding grounds. Unlike their terrestrial counterparts, however, these areas of critical habitat are not static points on the map; they can appear, disappear and move.
"In a terrestrial system, you can just draw a boundary around an important place and you have a park in the open ocean it's different. The habitats are 3D and moving," says Crowder.
In the open ocean, the vast distances covered by migratory species, and the shifting nature of these habitats has led some people to conclude that marine reserves cannot work. But tracking the movements of fishes, turtles, and mammals is helping scientists understand and map the most important areas, making their protection a possibility for the future.
"Open ocean reserves are the most di
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Contact: Jessica Brown
jbrown@seaweb.org
202-497-8375
SeaWeb
12-Feb-2004