58
WORLD ATLAS OF CORAL REEFS
Table 2.1: Target species being decimated for specialist markets worldwide
Target species
Notes
Lobster
High value, popular in tourist centers and for export, particularly in the Caribbean
Queen conch
High value, popular for tourist and local consumption, Caribbean
Trochus and green snail
Collected in Pacific islands for meat and mother-of-pearl
Have become very rare in some islands
Marine turtles
Popular food (meat and eggsl, often for local consumption
Use is now highly restricted in most areas
Sharks
Dried fins have very high value and are exported to the Far East
Sharks are being decimated worldwide, including in coral reef areas
Sea cucumbers or
Although there is some local consumption, high value in the Far East has led to
beche-de-mer
widespread exploitation across the Indo-Pacific
Giant clam
Popular for local consumption and export has led to local extinction in many
Pacific islands
Sea urchins
Certain species again popular in Far East export markets
Seahorses
Popularity for Chinese medicine and the aquarium trade has led to widespread
losses in some areas
Large groupers and
These and other very large reef fish have been widely removed from many reef
Napoleon wrasse
areas to supply the live fish trade
beyond sustainable limits. This may not be an entirely
modern phenomenon. Changes in fish catch from the
midden records in the Pacific suggest that even millenniaold cultures may have overexploited particular stocks.
The impact of European culture also led to rapid overexploitation of some stocks in the Caribbean as long ago
as the 17th and 18th centuries, when the Caribbean monk
seal began its decline towards eventual extinction, and
major turtle rookeries were decimated.
Modern society, particularly in the last few decades, has
greatly increased fishing pressure on reefs. Human populations have boomed in almost all coral reef areas. Fishing
methods have become more effective, and now include
cheap gears such as mass-produced metal hooks and monofilament line and nets. The means of access to reefs have
also greatly increased, with outboard motors and modern
building materials for boats. Refrigeration has also enabled
the storage of catches taken at remote reefs and the export
of catches to overseas markets.
A number of different types of overfishing have been
recognized. Economic overfishing occurs when fishing
effort is estimated to be in excess of the maximum
economic yield and yields per unit of effort are no longer
maximized. Growth overfishing is recognized as occurring
when the average size of the target fish is reduced towards
that of immature individuals. Recruitment overfishing is
Map 2.2: The 1998 coral bleaching event
1
"^c -X
4 :.^. . ...
.:*.'
\
-r
Coral reef
^'"''~'" "^»'"'*s»'- Severity of bleaching
ILowl
1
2
3 Ihigh)
WORLD ATLAS OF CORAL REEFS
Table 2.1: Target species being decimated for specialist markets worldwide
Target species
Notes
Lobster
High value, popular in tourist centers and for export, particularly in the Caribbean
Queen conch
High value, popular for tourist and local consumption, Caribbean
Trochus and green snail
Collected in Pacific islands for meat and mother-of-pearl
Have become very rare in some islands
Marine turtles
Popular food (meat and eggsl, often for local consumption
Use is now highly restricted in most areas
Sharks
Dried fins have very high value and are exported to the Far East
Sharks are being decimated worldwide, including in coral reef areas
Sea cucumbers or
Although there is some local consumption, high value in the Far East has led to
beche-de-mer
widespread exploitation across the Indo-Pacific
Giant clam
Popular for local consumption and export has led to local extinction in many
Pacific islands
Sea urchins
Certain species again popular in Far East export markets
Seahorses
Popularity for Chinese medicine and the aquarium trade has led to widespread
losses in some areas
Large groupers and
These and other very large reef fish have been widely removed from many reef
Napoleon wrasse
areas to supply the live fish trade
beyond sustainable limits. This may not be an entirely
modern phenomenon. Changes in fish catch from the
midden records in the Pacific suggest that even millenniaold cultures may have overexploited particular stocks.
The impact of European culture also led to rapid overexploitation of some stocks in the Caribbean as long ago
as the 17th and 18th centuries, when the Caribbean monk
seal began its decline towards eventual extinction, and
major turtle rookeries were decimated.
Modern society, particularly in the last few decades, has
greatly increased fishing pressure on reefs. Human populations have boomed in almost all coral reef areas. Fishing
methods have become more effective, and now include
cheap gears such as mass-produced metal hooks and monofilament line and nets. The means of access to reefs have
also greatly increased, with outboard motors and modern
building materials for boats. Refrigeration has also enabled
the storage of catches taken at remote reefs and the export
of catches to overseas markets.
A number of different types of overfishing have been
recognized. Economic overfishing occurs when fishing
effort is estimated to be in excess of the maximum
economic yield and yields per unit of effort are no longer
maximized. Growth overfishing is recognized as occurring
when the average size of the target fish is reduced towards
that of immature individuals. Recruitment overfishing is
Map 2.2: The 1998 coral bleaching event
1
"^c -X
4 :.^. . ...
.:*.'
\
-r
Coral reef
^'"''~'" "^»'"'*s»'- Severity of bleaching
ILowl
1
2
3 Ihigh)