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Are the scientific foundations of temperate marine reserves too warm and hard?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 March 2012

A.J. CAVEEN*
Affiliation:
School of Marine Science and Technology, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, UK
C.J. SWEETING
Affiliation:
School of Marine Science and Technology, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, UK
T.J. WILLIS
Affiliation:
National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research Ltd, PO Box 893, Nelson 7040, New Zealand
N.V.C. POLUNIN
Affiliation:
School of Marine Science and Technology, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, UK
*
*Correspondence: Mr Alex Caveen Tel +44 191 222 5607 e-mail a.j.caveen@ncl.ac.uk

Summary

The scientific literature (including some of the most high-profile papers) on the ecological and fisheries effects of permanent no-take marine reserves is dominated by examples from hard tropical and warm temperate ecosystems. It appears to have been tacitly assumed that inference from these studies can directly inform expectations of marine reserve effects in cooler temperate and cold temperate waters. Trends in peer-reviewed studies indicate that the empirical basis for this assumption is tenuous because of a relative lack of research effort in cooler seas, and differences between tropical and temperate regions in ecology, seasonality, the nature of fisheries and prevailing governance regimes.

Type
THEMATIC SECTION: Temperate Marine Protected Areas
Copyright
Copyright © Foundation for Environmental Conservation 2012

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